Denied Boarding due to SSSS on Boarding Pass
 

I'm appealing on here for some kind of help/light shed on a situation.
A friend of mine was due to fly into the UK yesterday (Flint > Detroit > Amsterdam > Birmingham UK).
He got onto the flint to detroit flight perfectly fine.
Got in the line to board the detroit to amsterdam flight and was denied boarding due to having SSSS on his boarding pass.
Now, I know that's a secondary security check.. but what I can't understand is this:
After being held, searched, baggage searched etc.. 14 people from that airport (not sure if all on the same flight) were sent BACK on the next flight to flint from detroit without so much as an explanation.
He spoke to the lady on the customer service desk at flint airport and she said he was not on the 'No-Fly' list but a 'Selectee' list, gave him a TIVF form and sent him home. She said that he would be reimbursed 100% the money of his flight(s) as it was not his fault that he was on the list, can anyone confirm that he would get reimbursed?
Now, me being me, I looked up this form that he was given.. and several people have said that it's hard to get your name taken off of this list?.. I'm wondering if this is correct?..
His surname is a VERY common one, probably the most common name you've ever heard.
He's now really down about it as it cost a lot of money for the flight and is very deflated about not being able to fly after looking forward to it for so long.
If there is no way of taking his name off of this list for sure, then what other options are there?.. Name change possibly? But if he did that, would he also get 'flagged' for changing his name thus name on passport and then flying after that. I know others have changed their names and then had no issue with boarding/flying but is this really the only way out?!
Please help.. I, for one, don't know what to do.
Many thanks

Thought I would also add in that last night in Birmingham UK there were riots and buildings set alight. I wondered if, had this not have happened in the UK, he possibly would have made it all the way to the UK border and then been denied there?.. Even though the riots are a bad thing, they worked out well for him as I am guessing the riots were the reason why 14 of them were held back.

TIVF is the "Traveler Identity Verification Form", which can be used to get him a redress number (correct?) in the event that he shares a name with someone who should be on the Selectee list.

If he shares a common name, and he really shouldn't be in this situation, the TIVF should help. If he should be on the list, then just fess up. :)

People don't change their names, they just mix things up some. Got from short to long, or long to short, of their first name, put in their full middle name, etc. That sometimes will "unmatch" them from the list.

Let us know how it turns out...

I don't understand why he was denied transport to Birmingham. Having an SSSS on ones boarding pass does not prohibit travel.

Did you friend arrive late at the gate in DTW? Was the AMS flight oversold? I suspect there is more to the story.

The airline, Delta, should have re-scheduled your friend onto another flight to Birmingham, UK, if he/she couldn't get on the AMS flight. Worst case scenaro, they should have re-scheduled your friend to travel the following day.

Thanks for your quick reply.
The lady at the customer services desk in FNT said that more than likely his name was cross matched with someone else on the list as it is something that happens quite regular.

Thanks for your reply.
This is also what I cannot understand. Unless, it was due to the riots in the UK that are happening as we speak and a question of safety for anyone flying in?
He wasn't late at DTW, arrived 3 hours early. He said there were only total of 20 of them on the AMS flight an 14 of them were removed (anyone who was not a resident of their destination country was removed).. so i'm thinking the riots had a lot to do with it?.. and it was just a case of he happened to be SSSS too?

Sounds more like an overbooked (or overweight) flight than anything to do with SSSS, and they chose specific people. "Selectee" suggest perhaps your friend volunteered somehow for a bump? Selectees are not on any no-fly lists, only specific people. I'd get a better explanation from the airline if I were you.

I've never had the SSSS so I'm not sure of the procedure other than the extra screening. Is it possible to have a SSSS on a connecting boarding pass? I would think you would only get that on the boarding pass at the first airport since you likely wouldn't go through security at a connecting airport in the US.

I don't travel internationally that often but I would think they would let him get to AMS. If it's not safe to continue on to Birmingham, then the airline wouldn't fly there.

Thank you. He's calling today. Could I ask you one more question please? What are the chances of him getting his money back or booked onto another flight this week?.. Now that he has returned home.
Thanks

For what it's worth; In 2006 and 2007 I always got SSSS on my boarding pass when traveling in or to the US. With roughly 10 trips a year from Europe to the US it was obviously quite annoying with all the extra security controls, but only once did it cause real troubles; In Charlotte I was denied boarding on a flight to Frankfurt. I newer got a good explanation about why, but later got an apology from LH and they covered all my expenses for accommodation and new ticket.

Thank you. That gives me some kinda of hope!.. He's calling the airline as we speak and going to ask why he was re-routed home instead of being allowed aboard the AMS flight. He's also going to ask about rescheduling a flight for some point this week for next. This is a total nightmare situation that I never thought would happen for someone who was planning on visiting the UK for a couple weeks. :(

I agree. It sounds completely unrelated. If you get a boarding pass, you're allowed to fly. Period. And having it happen on the second flight of a connection is just wierd.

If he doesn't get the answers he needs via phone, it might be worth a trip to the airport to speak to an agent there or the Delta Station Manager.

If he still wants to make the trip, he'll need to have Delta fix the ticket. otherwise, he would be entitled to a full refund.

I don't believe the UK riots had anything to do with this - I don't know if the flight was oversold, but something just isn't adding up.

I presume your friend holds a US passport? If that is the case, that is all he needs for travel to the UK as well as Schengen Europe. While he would stay in-transit at AMS, if he wanted to enter the country he'd have no problems doing so.

I've flown via Detroit to Amsterdam to the UK many times without problem. A couple of times I've even entered The Netherlands during my layover to meet friends and have lunch landside and then returned to international transit to board my flight to the UK.

I hold a US passport and I've never had any problems with UK Immigrations at all the points of entry I've used. Sometimes I fly non-stop from the US to the UK, other times I'll transit AMS and fly to the UK from there on KLM.

If your friend holds a valid US passport, there is no reason he should have been turned around.

There is also a Delta Air Lines forum here -- I'm thinking you may get more answers if this thread was transferred over there? (thoughts of others -- mods ?)

Have your friend login to FT and explain what happened.

SDF_Traveler

No. Seriously? Things happen all over the world every day.

Just as an aside to the SSSS on connecting flights - I had this happen to me. I was SSSS'd on my outbound and my connection. It did require that once I arrived in DFW that I had to go visit security (from the sterile side - I didn't exit first) and get re-checked. Nice part was that I had a drink from the first leg (purchased in the sterile area) that they allowed me to keep and leave with my stuff while I went through the WTMD.

Perhaps that is what the OP's friend needed to do -- absolutely ridiculous, IMHO.

I know they made changes where SSSS's are not 'common' anymore, but prior to that I would have SSSS BP's issued in the sterile area and not once was I ever told to return to security.

Regardless, Delta should have worked with the passenger. If, for whatever reason, they couldn't get him on the AMS flight, they should have rebooked him on a later flight or one the next day.

We obviously don't know what happened here but he didn't get dumped from the flight based on the SSSS markings. It sounds like two unrelated events.