Flying to US from Abroad with Prosthetics

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doingbetter
doingbetter Member Posts: 117
edited June 2014 in Living Without Reconstruction After a Mastectomy

I know there have been threads here regarding air travel with prosthetics and the TSA. As I've mentioned on those, we have cut back air travel drastically because of the inane randomness and intrusiveness of the system here. When I have flown and been told to go through a scanner (as opposed to "old-fashioned" metal detector), I have opted out and been subject to the pat down. I have not mentioned any medical condition or prosthetics and no one has seemed to notice them during the pat down. So it seems that we know the routine for travel here in the US pretty well.

But...have any of you flown out of a foreign country? My understanding is that from some there is no "opt out" option (I'm especially interested in the UK), and if you are randomly selected for a scanner you must go through or won't be able to board your flight. I am pretty sure that most scanners will pick up the prosthetics, and from what I have heard they have the right to ask to inspect the prosthetic. I have heard from a couple of acquaintances flying out of Heathrow that they were subject to extremely invasive searches (even being asked to pull the bra away from body). These are not people with any breast surgery - just randomly picked for further screening.

Could any of you share your experiences with flying abroad?

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  • momof3boys
    momof3boys Member Posts: 896
    edited January 2012

    I'm not sure what your prosthetics are, but are they something that were prescribed by a doctor? I'm not planning to travel anytime soon (middle of chemo), but I have TE's in place and my PS gave me two "credit cards" that had my TE info and registration numbers on them in case I was planning to travel. TE's have a metal port on them...

    Maybe you could get something similar to keep in your wallet from your doctor?

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  • chrissyb
    chrissyb Member Posts: 16,818
    edited January 2012

    Hi, I flew from Australia to the USA via Singapore and London and then New Zealand on the way home, disembarking in each place and of course having to go through the screening process each time to resume my trip.  At each point as I was going into the screening booth I mentioned that I had a pin in my left arm and I wore prosthetics.  I did get the pat down a few times but that was because my knees were so swollen they looked like I had something strapped to them and was trying to smuggle so of course they were targeted.  I did not mind as they were only doing their job for my and everyone elses safety and the looks on their faces when they realised that they were indeed just my knees was priceless......lol.

    So bottom line, for me it was no trouble at all.

    Love n hugs.  Chrissy

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  • sgreenarch
    sgreenarch Member Posts: 528
    edited January 2012

    Hi. I've flown internationally three times since my mx. I place my prosthesis in my carry on and wear a bulky sweater with a sports bra and some padding. I've never had a problem and it's more comfortable on a long flight.



    Shari

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