Originally Posted by
SATTSO
Originally Posted by
RadioGirl
Originally Posted by
SATTSO
Yes, right now it only benefits a few passegers as it is still a pilot program. But what about when it is eventually opened to all passengers to apply, and all airlines at all airports?
Does "all passengers" include people who are not US citizens and/or live in the US? After all, such people fly within the USA every day.
Does "all passengers" include those who fly one round-trip every third year to visit grandchildren on the other side of the country, on a carefully researched discounted economy fare, for whom a $100 application fee would be too expensive? After all, such people fly within the USA every day.
Does "all passengers" include those who fly rarely, on different airlines, and therefore don't belong to or qualify for an airline's frequent flyer or elite program? After all, such people fly within the USA every day.
Does "all passengers" include a person who has never flown before but suddenly needs to fly across the country at short notice - to see a dying relative or go for a last-minute job interview - and won't have time for an application process? After all, such people fly within the USA every day.
Until the answer to all of the above is "yes", all this program is doing is creating a two-class society at the airport. And despite the fact that I don't belong to any of the groups listed above, I don't think that's acceptable. And as BubbaLoop said, I suspect it will make things even worse for the "have nots" as the entire TSA workfarce can concentrate its efforts on the "suspicious" minority.
Really easy to argue when you pick and chose what to argue about, as I clearly wrote "all passengers to apply". If you wish to discuss what I wrote, do so, but don't pick and chose from what I wrote - as that changes the context of what I stated. But perhaps that is the only way you can argue against what I said?
Okay, then, let me rephrase the questions to address the issue that it is the passenger
who must apply to be in the program:
- Will non-US citizens (living outside the US or within the US) be allowed to apply for the program and be evaluated on the same basis as US citizens?
- Will people who do not reside in the US (US citizens or non-US citizens) be allowed to apply for the program and be evaluated on the same basis as US citizens residing in the US?
- Will the application fees for the program be low enough that a person who only travels once every few years on a carefully chosen discount ticket can justify the additional cost?
- Will the application process be fast enough that someone who is flying at, say, 24 hours notice can apply and be approved?
You asked the question about whether we would change our minds about this program "when it is eventually opened to all passengers to apply, and all airlines at all airports". I am trying to determine just what "all" means in your question. If it means "all US citizens living in the US who can justify spending $150/year and who can wait 6 weeks to be approved", then that's quite different from "everyone who flies though a US airport at any time."
See, if it reaches the point where 80% or 90% of passengers are "trusted travellers", then by definition the remaining 20% or 10% are "untrusted" or "suspicious" travellers and will get extra scrutiny at the checkpoint. The attitude of TSA is then likely to be "well, it's your own fault that you didn't apply for the PreCheck program." Or worse, "there must be something wrong with you if you didn't apply." But if entire categories of people - non-US citizens/residents, infrequent or last minute flyers -
cannot apply, that continues to create a two-class system where these groups are systematically discriminated against by a US government agency.