tfung and jagmeets :

thank you both kindly for your comments.

jagmeets : wouldn't one think Cathay would get an escort to help with their first class passengers? there are so few passengers in question and Cathay offers so incredibly little in Terminal 8 for First Class passengers to begin with, you'd think that they would try a little harder.

since Cathay isn't trying at all, we're left to selecting the smartest line to get into, i guess, for efficient processing at the TSA line. may i ask roughly how much time one should budget for getting through this line please? would 30 minutes to 45 minutes be enough? or does it not take nearly that long?

iirc, flying Emirates last time was out of a different terminal and they had a Priority Pass "lounge", which isn't much of a lounge at all BUT they do have that very special side door which they would escort you to and that side door places you at the very front of the line, immediately next to the machines! amazing. but, alas, that's only in one terminal at JFK, and not Terminal 8.