Originally Posted by senoreit
That article sounds kind of old. How many years ago did they stop asking whether one's bag has been left unattended and whether one has accepted gifts/items from a stranger?
So it's been established that there is no directive from the government to airlines to deny boarding to a customer solely on the basis that he/she can not or will not show a government-issued photo ID. Does that mean that airlines are not allowed to deny boarding to someone solely on that basis, or is it simply left up to the discretion of the individual airlines?
The article does look old even though dated 2006. Also, the theory that there is no ID requirement to fly is an urban legend. While the ID requirement is not spelled out in the TSA's statutes or regulations, there are apparently a series of classified security directives which spell out this requirement. One individual has challenged this requirement and lost before the 9th Circuit. The decision is below in Gilmore v. Gonzales:
http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/coa/newopinions.nsf/A6AE4C85241C517C88257101007B72EB/$file/0415736.pdf?openelement
Gilmore appealed to the Supreme Court last month but the Supreme Court has not decided whether to hear the case. I suspect that it will not hear the case because the Court will generally hear such cases when their are conflicting decisions between different appellate circuits - which there are not here.