Originally Posted by
ND76
Mrs. ND76 and I are headed for HKG on Delta.
We arrive back into SEA at approximately 0755 local time, with our onward flight scheduled to leave at 0930 (which means being on the plane by 0915). What are the average wait times to go through CBP at SEA (I have GE, my bride does not)? What is TSA like after CBP? Is there any pre-check there? Thanks for any help you can provide.
I did the HKG-SEA flight in June - I had GE, my travel companion did not. There was no GE line for me. Maybe took about 15-20 minutes for them to go through immigration. I still had to wait for my checked bag at the carousel though, and think I only had to wait about 5-10 minutes for them to finish with immigration after I got my bag. There was a bag re-check desk, and then the connection line which funnels you into a TSA checkpoint, and the local arrivals line (which I believe takes you to the underground tram and out to the unsecure side of the main terminal). The connection line did NOT have a precheck lane, and probably took a good 30 minutes to go through as a line had formed and there were several folks in wheelchairs ahead of us. So probably about 50 minutes for us to clear back to the secure side (If it was just me, I'm guessing that exiting via the tram out to the main terminal and going through the main TSA line with precheck might have been faster).
Only having done this flight once, I think if you don't check bags, you have a good shot at making the onward flight. (Perhaps try to sit closer to the front of the plane so you're in front of more people at the immigration and security re-clear line)