Originally Posted by
alee0729
The policy is set by the airport authority and the TSA only. The airlines are just along for the ride -- they cannot make up their own rules. But we're splitting hairs here... it's still a privilege, not a right, to go airside.
Even with a full fare ticket, you are not guaranteed access. The airline, the TSA, and designated badged employees exercise the discretion.
No. TSA works with the airlines. The airport has nothing to do with the boarding passes being issued, nor the screening done at the airport.
No. They aren't making up rules. This is the established policy followed for gate access at every airport, with discretion given by the airline employees on who gets gate passes.
This isn't splitting hairs. Nobody ever said it was a right. You made that up as a distraction. Nobody cares if it's a right, a privilege or a reward for putting on big boy underwear correctly. The discussion was on getting access to the gate to assist the poster's family in getting to the gate. You gave very incorrect advice. It's important that anyone actually wanting a gate pass waste time going to the airport 72 hours ahead of time, only to be laughed at by the airline personnel while being told to come back the date the gate pass is needed. Rather than throwing out red herrings and giving more poor advice, you should buck up, apologize and correct yourself. Look up my old posts and you'll see I've done this several times. It's not about one person being right. It's about giving accurate advice, so that FT remains a site we can get the answers we need.
End of rant.