Dec 26, 2012, 9:58 pm
Last edit by: JDiver
TSA Pre-Check / PreCheck Known Traveler program for AA FFs (consolidated)
You are eligible to be selected (on a flight-by-flight basis) for TSA PreCheck expedited screening if:
- You are a frequent American Airlines flyer that have been invited by American Airlines to participate and followed the instructions on the email to accept, or/and
- You participate in a "Trusted Traveler" program (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI and/or TSA PreCheck application program) and have entered your "Known Traveler ID" in the reservation
- If you're using your AAdvantage number, you can enter the "Known Traveler ID" in the Personal Information and Password tab of My Account) so it will auto-populate in all new reservations bearing the AAdvantage number made anywhere
- If your reservation doesn't have your AAdvantage number, you can retrieve it and add the "Known Traveler ID" to it. The method is not very intuitive: on AA.com click on my trips, then on view all, then on find my reservation and enter either the record locator (if you know it), or the flight information using the AA operating flight number (not any eventual codeshare number from another airline).
- Your Secure Flight Information (name, sex, DOB) in the reservation must match the one with the program (except for "middle" or other names, which are ignored) (name on ticket does not matter)
- You will find your "Known Traveler ID" on the GOES website or on your program's card, under the name "PASSID". It is either 9 digits or the letters TT plus 7 digits
NOTE: 20 May 2016: "Today’s announcement makes a total of 16 carriers that participate in TSA Pre✓®: Aeromexico, Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, Allegiant, American Airlines, Cape Air, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Seaborne Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Sun Country Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin America and WestJet.
Passengers who are eligible for TSA Pre✓® include: members of the TSA Pre✓® application program, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Trusted Traveler program, Global Entry, and Canadian citizens who are members of CBP’s NEXUS program. TSA Pre✓® is also available for U.S. Armed Forces service members, including those serving in the U.S. Coast Guard, Reserves and National Guard."
Link
How it works
In the Pre-Check lane, you no longer need to remove the following items:
- Shoes (some, such as steel-toed shoes, may require removal)
- 3-1-1 compliant bag from your carry-on (all liquid restrictions still apply)
- Laptop from your bag (if electronics are stacked on top of each other, they require removal)
- Light outerwear or jacket
- Belt (large belt buckles may require removal)
- Pre-Check Lanes are WTMD only-- No NoS in use
LOCATIONS
Link to FlyerGuide Wiki listing of American Airlines (only) PreCheck checkpoints.
Link to FT thread AA Airport / Concourse TSA PreCheck - Hours [only] (may not be current)
See also post 1 of this thread. (It contains much additional info in the Moderator's Note.)
NOTE: PreCheck is changing to a Trusted Traveler (GE/NEXUS/SENTRI) -like program, where anyone will be able apply and pay USD $85 (online or at a PreCheck enrollment center), be vetted for approval, present proof of identification and be fingerprinted at a PreCheck enrollment center (IAD and IND, opening Fall 2013, will be thie first), and be granted PreCheck status for five years from that time. It will not be airline - or airline status - tied.
"Current PreCheck participants, including those eligible via a CBP Trusted Traveler Program such as Global Entry, will continue to receive PreCheck eligibility. Participants who opted-in through their airline frequent flyer program may want to consider applying for PreCheck, as they are more likely to be selected for PreCheck expedited screening more often if they are vetted via the PreCheck application process." Link.
Trusted Traveler (Global Entry, Nexus, Sentri) and Having Problems with PreCheck?
If you belong to one of the Trusted Traveler Programs listed above, you may run into issues getting PreCheck clearance if your Secure Flight Data is not an exact match to the data that you entered into your application on the GOES (Global Online Enrollment System) website when you applied for your TT membership.
For example, if your airline account has Bob Jones, but your GOES account has Bob James Jones, then the TSA may not be associating your information properly when it "decides" who can and can not have access. Additionally, if your PASS ID # (listed above in the screen-shots) is not an exact match, there will be a mismatch when TSA processes your information, and you will not receive PreCheck.
To ensure you receive PreCheck on all flights (domestic & internatioal), be sure to ensure the information in your AA profile is accurate. The name on the ticket does not matter- the "Secure Flight Data" is what is used to determine PreCheck status.
Signed in members with 90 days / 90 posts can edit this Wikipost; wiki contents may be printed by using the
(lower right wiki corner)TSA Pre✓® / PreCheck / Pre Check Issues, Changes, etc.
Known issues:
- Not every airport or terminal offers the TSA Pre✓® program
- TSA Pre✓® may have limited or irregular hours or closed at times without notice
- TSA Pre✓® members are still be subject to random selection for intensified screening
- TSA Pre✓® program has changed from an airline elite invitation program to a fee-based program with certain screening requirements
- If one's TSA Pre✓® status is from the pilot invitation program and one doesn't have a Known Traveler Number ("KTN"), TSA Pre✓® status may not carry on to another airline and one may experience increasing denials (not having the TSA Pre✓® printed on boarding pass and being sent to the regular TSA screening queues
Link to TSA Application Program and TSA Pre✓® program information, links
Changes to TSA Pre✓®
TSA Pre✓® was originally offered by certain airlines to their elite status members. These TSA Pre✓® members do not have a Known Traveler Number from a USDHS trusted traveler program (GOES / Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI or the new $85 fee based TSA Pre✓® Application Program offered to the flying public with 5 year renewal), making TSA Pre✓® status portability challenging. See the DHS Trusted Traveler programs listing and comparison chart here. Please read the following:
From American Airlines, April 2015:
This month, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is making changes to the TSA Pre✓® Trusted Traveler Program that will impact which travelers receive expedited screening. If you're not already a member of one of the Trusted Traveler programs like Global Entry or the TSA Pre✓® Application Program, you will probably see a decline in how often you receive expedited screening, even if you've previously "opted-in" through a frequent flyer program.
The best way to increase your chances of receiving TSA Pre✓® on a regular basis is to register for a Trusted Traveler Program with the Department of Homeland Security at dhs.gov/tt. Once you receive your Known Traveler Number (KTN) from TSA, be sure you update your AAdvantage profile.
To add your KTN to your AAdvantage profile:For more information on TSA Pre✓®, visit tsa.gov/tsa-precheck.
This month, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is making changes to the TSA Pre✓® Trusted Traveler Program that will impact which travelers receive expedited screening. If you're not already a member of one of the Trusted Traveler programs like Global Entry or the TSA Pre✓® Application Program, you will probably see a decline in how often you receive expedited screening, even if you've previously "opted-in" through a frequent flyer program.
The best way to increase your chances of receiving TSA Pre✓® on a regular basis is to register for a Trusted Traveler Program with the Department of Homeland Security at dhs.gov/tt. Once you receive your Known Traveler Number (KTN) from TSA, be sure you update your AAdvantage profile.
To add your KTN to your AAdvantage profile:
- Login to your account on aa.com and select My Account from the AAdvantage menu
- Within My Account, go to the Information and Password tab
- Add your Customs and Border Protection 9-digit PASS ID to your secure traveler information
[Archived] TSA Pre-Check / PreCheck Known Traveler program for AA FFs
Jan 17, 2012, 4:50 pm
#721
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold but PlatPro thanks to LPs
Posts: 4,439
What does Common Sense tell you? Certain people have been through background checks, etc, and are considered Trusted Travelers.
Great, most of the time they get expedited screening and save some time. However, in no way is expedited screening GUARANTEED. The passenger does not know until the boarding pass is scanned, and then at that point in time they must go with either the expedited line or the regular line.
Why would they let someone "change their mind" upon learning the barcode in the boarding pass is "regular" and not "expedited"???
If someone had contraband in their possession and if they had been cleared for TT and if, for whatever random reason they were chosen for regular screening, they would want to catch and identify that person. My guess is that if a TT refused regular screening either by saying "I just decided not to travel today" or "I'll go back and try my luck with a new boarding pass", that passenger would be detained and thoroughly searched. I would further guess that passenger would lose TT privledges for a good long time, possibly for life.
Why do I guess that? Because during my Global Entry interview, the BCP agent stressed that if a GE passenger was ever caught with anything illegal, they would be immediately removed from GE status for life.
The GE/TT traveler has been offered an opportunity to get expedited screening and/or immigration/customs checks some, but not all, of the time. Don't like it? Don't sign up for GE/TT and do learn to love standing in long lines every time.
Personally, I'm happy with the knowledge that some of the time I will move past long lines. I have much to gain, nothing to lose, by cooperating with the program exactly.
Jan 17, 2012, 4:51 pm
#722
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,934
That is how it looked this morning -- as though anyone who could get to that part of the mezzanine could present themselves for screening in 4A. It would seem to make more sense to have the BP check outside the door, so that people who are not part of Pre-Check at all could be sent to another door, but that's not how the TSO I spoke with said it was going to be done.
If only a fraction of people going through the airport are pre-selected, and only a fraction of those get rejected, it may be more efficient to let some people self-select 4A to use the right side of 4A (which otherwise only the selected-but-rejected would need) more efficiently.
Jan 17, 2012, 4:57 pm
#723
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Seattle
Programs: AS MVPG 75K
Posts: 2,574
Folks, this defies common sense.
What does Common Sense tell you? Certain people have been through background checks, etc, and are considered Trusted Travelers.
Great, most of the time they get expedited screening and save some time. However, in no way is expedited screening GUARANTEED. The passenger does not know until the boarding pass is scanned, and then at that point in time they must go with either the expedited line or the regular line.
Why would they let someone "change their mind" upon learning the barcode in the boarding pass is "regular" and not "expedited"???
If someone had contraband in their possession and if they had been cleared for TT and if, for whatever random reason they were chosen for regular screening, they would want to catch and identify that person. My guess is that if a TT refused regular screening either by saying "I just decided not to travel today" or "I'll go back and try my luck with a new boarding pass", that passenger would be detained and thoroughly searched. I would further guess that passenger would lose TT privledges for a good long time, possibly for life.
Why do I guess that? Because during my Global Entry interview, the BCP agent stressed that if a GE passenger was ever caught with anything illegal, they would be immediately removed from GE status for life.
The GE/TT traveler has been offered an opportunity to get expedited screening and/or immigration/customs checks some, but not all, of the time. Don't like it? Don't sign up for GE/TT and do learn to love standing in long lines every time.
Personally, I'm happy with the knowledge that some of the time I will move past long lines. I have much to gain, nothing to lose, by cooperating with the program exactly.
What does Common Sense tell you? Certain people have been through background checks, etc, and are considered Trusted Travelers.
Great, most of the time they get expedited screening and save some time. However, in no way is expedited screening GUARANTEED. The passenger does not know until the boarding pass is scanned, and then at that point in time they must go with either the expedited line or the regular line.
Why would they let someone "change their mind" upon learning the barcode in the boarding pass is "regular" and not "expedited"???
If someone had contraband in their possession and if they had been cleared for TT and if, for whatever random reason they were chosen for regular screening, they would want to catch and identify that person. My guess is that if a TT refused regular screening either by saying "I just decided not to travel today" or "I'll go back and try my luck with a new boarding pass", that passenger would be detained and thoroughly searched. I would further guess that passenger would lose TT privledges for a good long time, possibly for life.
Why do I guess that? Because during my Global Entry interview, the BCP agent stressed that if a GE passenger was ever caught with anything illegal, they would be immediately removed from GE status for life.
The GE/TT traveler has been offered an opportunity to get expedited screening and/or immigration/customs checks some, but not all, of the time. Don't like it? Don't sign up for GE/TT and do learn to love standing in long lines every time.
Personally, I'm happy with the knowledge that some of the time I will move past long lines. I have much to gain, nothing to lose, by cooperating with the program exactly.
The TSA does not have the power to detain you. If the TSA will not let you pass through the security checkpoint or you do not want to consent to any request they make you have the right to turn around and leave. The TSA can call the police if they are suspicious of you and a law enforcement officer could potentially detain you.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:01 pm
#724
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,934
Once they scan the boarding pass and see "LLL" or "not LLL", you must follow through. You can't change your mind and go try again.
They make it clear that the expedited screening is not an entitlement. There will be some random TT passengers who get the full screening.
They make it clear that the expedited screening is not an entitlement. There will be some random TT passengers who get the full screening.
Ie, if you get "LLL", must you go to A4, or do you simply need to go to A4 if you want a chance at expedited screening? If you go to some other door than A4, you are not going to expedited screening for sure, but is there anything wrong with that other than inefficiency? Will they steer you back to A4, will they scold you for not having gone to A4?
In my case, on some of my trips (not the next few, which are DEQ11 MRs
), I carry photo film which I ask to be hand-screened. (Yeah, I worry more about X-rays on my film than X-rays on my body! ) I don't know if this would be approriate (or at least appreciated) to do in an expedited screening lane. For the sake of my fellow passengers, on such trips, I often take the longest line in the room since I know that the request for hand-screening is going to slow everything down. But I'm not sure how to adjust that protocol on a trip where I've been selected for expedited screening.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:01 pm
#725
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
Folks, this defies common sense.
What does Common Sense tell you? Certain people have been through background checks, etc, and are considered Trusted Travelers.
Great, most of the time they get expedited screening and save some time. However, in no way is expedited screening GUARANTEED. The passenger does not know until the boarding pass is scanned, and then at that point in time they must go with either the expedited line or the regular line.
Why would they let someone "change their mind" upon learning the barcode in the boarding pass is "regular" and not "expedited"???
If someone had contraband in their possession and if they had been cleared for TT and if, for whatever random reason they were chosen for regular screening, they would want to catch and identify that person. My guess is that if a TT refused regular screening either by saying "I just decided not to travel today" or "I'll go back and try my luck with a new boarding pass", that passenger would be detained and thoroughly searched. I would further guess that passenger would lose TT privledges for a good long time, possibly for life.
Why do I guess that? Because during my Global Entry interview, the BCP agent stressed that if a GE passenger was ever caught with anything illegal, they would be immediately removed from GE status for life.
The GE/TT traveler has been offered an opportunity to get expedited screening and/or immigration/customs checks some, but not all, of the time. Don't like it? Don't sign up for GE/TT and do learn to love standing in long lines every time.
Personally, I'm happy with the knowledge that some of the time I will move past long lines. I have much to gain, nothing to lose, by cooperating with the program exactly.
What does Common Sense tell you? Certain people have been through background checks, etc, and are considered Trusted Travelers.
Great, most of the time they get expedited screening and save some time. However, in no way is expedited screening GUARANTEED. The passenger does not know until the boarding pass is scanned, and then at that point in time they must go with either the expedited line or the regular line.
Why would they let someone "change their mind" upon learning the barcode in the boarding pass is "regular" and not "expedited"???
If someone had contraband in their possession and if they had been cleared for TT and if, for whatever random reason they were chosen for regular screening, they would want to catch and identify that person. My guess is that if a TT refused regular screening either by saying "I just decided not to travel today" or "I'll go back and try my luck with a new boarding pass", that passenger would be detained and thoroughly searched. I would further guess that passenger would lose TT privledges for a good long time, possibly for life.
Why do I guess that? Because during my Global Entry interview, the BCP agent stressed that if a GE passenger was ever caught with anything illegal, they would be immediately removed from GE status for life.
The GE/TT traveler has been offered an opportunity to get expedited screening and/or immigration/customs checks some, but not all, of the time. Don't like it? Don't sign up for GE/TT and do learn to love standing in long lines every time.
Personally, I'm happy with the knowledge that some of the time I will move past long lines. I have much to gain, nothing to lose, by cooperating with the program exactly.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:07 pm
#726
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
I agree with pretty much everything you've posted but one correction and an important reminder:
The TSA does not have the power to detain you. If the TSA will not let you pass through the security checkpoint or you do not want to consent to any request they make you have the right to turn around and leave. The TSA can call the police if they are suspicious of you and a law enforcement officer could potentially detain you.
The TSA does not have the power to detain you. If the TSA will not let you pass through the security checkpoint or you do not want to consent to any request they make you have the right to turn around and leave. The TSA can call the police if they are suspicious of you and a law enforcement officer could potentially detain you.
Get the BP scanned, no LLL, was expecting LLL so wore loafers w/o socks, need to go over to bench and put on socks since I'll have to remove shoes for screening.
Balancing w/o touching the floor while putting on socks and minding one's luggage could be difficult and I for one would want to go sit on a bench for that bit. Doesn't seem worth getting into a battle royale on their part when I say "I'm not walking on this floor barefoot and am walking over to that bench 20 ft. away to get some socks" but perhaps I still continue to underestimate TSA...
Jan 17, 2012, 5:11 pm
#727
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Seattle
Programs: AS MVPG 75K
Posts: 2,574
Plus potential scenarios like:
Get the BP scanned, no LLL, was expecting LLL so wore loafers w/o socks, need to go over to bench and put on socks since I'll have to remove shoes for screening.
Balancing w/o touching the floor while putting on socks and minding one's luggage could be difficult and I for one would want to go sit on a bench for that bit. Doesn't seem worth getting into a battle royale on their part when I say "I'm not walking on this floor barefoot and am walking over to that bench 20 ft. away to get some socks" but perhaps I still continue to underestimate TSA...
Get the BP scanned, no LLL, was expecting LLL so wore loafers w/o socks, need to go over to bench and put on socks since I'll have to remove shoes for screening.
Balancing w/o touching the floor while putting on socks and minding one's luggage could be difficult and I for one would want to go sit on a bench for that bit. Doesn't seem worth getting into a battle royale on their part when I say "I'm not walking on this floor barefoot and am walking over to that bench 20 ft. away to get some socks" but perhaps I still continue to underestimate TSA...
) and nobody on FT is going to be able to give you any advice based on more than a guess.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:51 pm
#728
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold but PlatPro thanks to LPs
Posts: 4,439
When you are taking a sample from the population, it is necessary to follow protocol to avoid introducing bias. For example, if you are pulling 10 widgets from a box of Finished Goods, protocol may require you to sample one widget from the bottom of the box (dig deep), one from the middle, four from the sides, etc.
It is imperative to eliminate any kind of self-selection. You don't want a "good" widget to jump into your hand, so to speak. Nor do you want a "bad" widget to hide in the corner to avoid becoming a sample. You want a truly random sample and you want an accurate picture of your production quality.
Allowing passengers to present multiple boarding passes and scan boarding passes until an "LLL" is visible is self-selection and not a random process. Theoretically, all TT passengers could present boarding passes infinitely until they get one coded "LLL". In such a case, no TT passenger would ever go through non-expedited screening and a Bad Guy could use that to his advantage.
The system depends on uncertainty. No TT is ever guaranteed expedited screening, nor even an increased chance of expedited screening based on presentation of multiple boarding passes.
As they say in kindergarten: You get what you get and don't throw a fit.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:54 pm
#729
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold but PlatPro thanks to LPs
Posts: 4,439
Mistake #2: No socks? Please don't sit next to me. Yech.
I fly Coach. Your stinky feet will be way too close to my nose.
Jan 17, 2012, 5:55 pm
#730
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: LAX
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold but PlatPro thanks to LPs
Posts: 4,439
The TSA does not have the power to detain you. If the TSA will not let you pass through the security checkpoint or you do not want to consent to any request they make you have the right to turn around and leave. The TSA can call the police if they are suspicious of you and a law enforcement officer could potentially detain you.
Jan 17, 2012, 6:35 pm
#731
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
And don't worry, I don't fly coach
(nor do I remove my shoes on a non-redeye)
Jan 17, 2012, 6:38 pm
#732
Join Date: Sep 2011
Programs: AA SPG Amex
Posts: 4,644
If I were the TSA agent I would probably direct you to the non TT lane even if your second bp came up LLL. I have no idea if they have any specific instructions concerning this specific scenario (I doubt it, it's the TSA ) and nobody on FT is going to be able to give you any advice based on more than a guess.
) and nobody on FT is going to be able to give you any advice based on more than a guess.
Jan 17, 2012, 7:10 pm
#734
Join Date: Aug 2004
Programs: AA (EP), Hilton (Diamond), Marriott Bonvoy (Titanium)
Posts: 8,937
That is how it looked this morning -- as though anyone who could get to that part of the mezzanine could present themselves for screening in 4A. It would seem to make more sense to have the BP check outside the door, so that people who are not part of Pre-Check at all could be sent to another door, but that's not how the TSO I spoke with said it was going to be done.
Global Entry was smooth sailing, but they really need to do a better job of pointing out where the machines are. I saw the big "GE EXIT" sign and arrow, went for it, saw no kiosks, had to ask, went back to where they were, then I was good. The gentleman at the special GE exit agreed with me that they shouldn't have the sign there with poor signage for the kiosks (can't see them if you aren't all the way to the right with a crowd of people getting off a plane). I was the only one on my flight using them, pretty sure I got through customs first, so well worth it
One would imagine they wouldn't. So, if you get BPs printed at home, at a kiosk, and from an agent, each of them has a random change of being marked for expedited screening? Strange.
Jan 17, 2012, 7:31 pm
#735
Moderator: Alaska Mileage Plan
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 12,319
Until refuted, I will continue to believe that that the randomness of selection is determined at the PNR level, not the printing level.