Monarch Hijacking at GATWICK Airport

BE WARNED - Those in Power at Monarch have passed down to their staff on Reception at Gatwick to be over enthusiastic about case sizes in particular your hand luggage. I was accosted on my way in to the Monarch area by a very large, very rude, very forceful member of Monarch staff. She was not close enough to speak to me so she started waving her hands and scowling very violently at me to proceed over to her. I was then instructed to put my hand luggage case in to her "measuring device". This I did and was immediately told off because I'd put it in the wrong way - but it did fit ok. She immediately proceeded to yanking my case out and putting it in at a different angle. Now this was where my first crime was committed. My wheel was half an inch too long somehow the way she had inserted it. I tried to reason with her, but she was now getting very agitated with me and was ordered to pay an extra £44 for the case and told it now had to go through as normal luggage and NOT hand luggage. At this point she sent me to the *Offenders desk*, but this is where I committed my second crime. I yanked out my new camera and took a photograph of the situation and then proceeded to the said desk. I had hardly got there and I felt a hand on my shoulder - I was now being informed that if I did not delete the photo that she would call the police. The strange part was that this was a brand new camera so I did not know how to delete this photograph, so I ended up saying to her "if you wan't it deleted - you do it", which she did. End of subject so I thought.

I am now standing in the queue at Departures with no luggage whatsoever. I gave my Boarding Pass and Passport over and suddenly the computer makes all types of noises and alarms to which the man behind the desk has to pick up the phone and make a phone call. Upon putting the phone down I was then given a lecture so that everybody could here about what would happen to me if I dared to take another photograph. I must add one other thing by the way - ALL staff seem over insistent on me taking their names of which did not interest me in the slightest as this was obviously Monarch Head Office and nothing really to do with the staff - they were just carrying out these orders. Just as a passing note - the rumour at the Airport was that they thought that maybe the staff were on commission of how many extra charges they could make against people. Thank God I will not be going back to England for at least another year !!