Ari

TSA does not staff the line entrances; airlines do that however the please. The system at many airports is that an airline/airport contract employee guards the elite lane and the TSA PreCheck lane and directs people into or away from them. There is never a TSA employee guarding the entrance to a line.

The TSA document checker has no more authority to send a non-PreCheck passenger in the PreCheck line to the back of the regular line than to send a non-elite passenger in the elite lane back to the general line. The airlines are in charge of what happens up until the document checker. If they don't guard the line entrances, too bad; that isn't TSA's problem to fix. TSA and the airlines cooperate on the checkpoint layouts, especially with PreCheck, but the airline, not the TSA, decides who uses which line (which is why UA GS and AA CK can share a line with TSA PreCheck at certain airports-- it is up to the airline).

Most people who post in these forums presumably scan their BP barcode as soon as they check-in online.

I don't know which airports you traverse, but "Priority Lanes" ain't what they used to be. I find "masses" of people in the "Priority Lanes" all the time and don't seem very able to "bypass" them.

How does one "apply" to PreCheck? What did you do?

And PreCheck is further limited to CAN/USA citizens (for the most part).

Actually, that's how non-USA/CAN citizens get PreCheck: they have a frequent flyer history with a participating carrier. The carrier and TSA have very little way of knowing that person's citizenship, so plenty of non-USA/CAN citizens get PreCheck even though TSA might rather they didn't (TSA is intentionally vague in their sentence structure when talking about PreCheck eligibility). Presumably TSA asks the airlines to exclude everyone with a non-US address, but that says nothing of citizenship, of course.

Again, even they can't get PreCheck by virtue of GE (USA/CAN citizens only).

SFO777

I was not referring to the line entrances.
Why wouldn't the TSA doc checker have the authority to deny non-PreCheck access the opportunity to jump the queue?
A simple "Sir, this lane is for PreCheck only. You do not qualify. Please go back and start again in the regular line." is all that it would take.
A couple times on the receiving end of that would be enough to cure the problem.

BubbaLoop

Sorry for the poor wording. I obviously did not apply for it - I inquired with the airline (which has my passport data because I fly mostly internationally, in addition to holding a non-US address) based on my FF status.

Bubbaloop, still waiting for an apology from people who accuse her of going to the US to look for handouts.

Ari

Because what happens until the TSA document checker is up to the airline/airport, not TSA. Very simple.

SFO777

I stated the "TSA doc checker", not the "what happens up until the TSA doc checker". Very simple.

"...Why wouldn't the TSA doc checker have the authority to deny non-PreCheck access the opportunity to jump the queue?
A simple "Sir, this lane is for PreCheck only. You do not qualify. Please go back and start again in the regular line." is all that it would take.
A couple times on the receiving end of that would be enough to cure the problem..."

As in...
Guy sees a big line at regular security.
Guy sees only a couple of people in the PreCheck line.
Guy walks into the PreCheck lane.
Guy hands his boarding pass and ID to the TSA doc checker.
Guy does not get the three beeps.
TSA agent says "Sir, this lane is for PreCheck only. You do not qualify. Please go back and start again in the regular line."
Guy asks "can't I just go to the regular security from here (bypassing all those schmoes that are waiting in the regular line)?".
TSA agent says "No sir. A lot of people like you try to game the system and try to jump the queue by coming here. You will have to go back the end of the regular queue."

SFO777

I considered it, but the fact that you "will continue to "clog up the line" whenever I can, because I believe everyone should have the right to be checked in the manner you are." was enough to dissuade me.

RedSnapper

+1 to this! For the select few of you out there who will be delayed or inconvenienced by others clogging up your line, we commoners will cry you a river for the few seconds of time you lose. We are so sorry we are not eager to accept violations of our civil rights that you could care less about because of your special class exemption.

saulblum

Being PreCheck-eligible is no guarantee that on any given flight you will be eligible for PreCheck screening (even if it has apparently not happened to you).

http://www.tsa.gov/tsa-pre✓™/tsa-pre...-participation

So under your scheme, airline elites and trusted travelers will be told to go back to the end of the peon line.

Some day, you too will be deemed a threat for a particular flight and your government will not deem you worthy for that journey.

OldGoat

I can understand the TDC knowing that someone is not SELECTED for Pre-check (no three beeps), but how does the TDC know that the someone is not in the Pre-check program, and simply was not selected for this flight? That information is not on the BP.

What you seem to be suggesting is that everyone who qualifies for Pre-check, but was not selected for that flight, must be refused entry through the Pre-check line. Is that your position?

SFO777

Absolutely yes.
First of all, if I don't qualify for PreCheck (trip involving international travel), I don't go to the PreCheck lane.
Then, if for whatever reason I am denied by the BP scanner, I have no problem going to the Priority line or CLEAR.
I'm all for strict enforcement of the PreCheck to stop abuse and to avoid the nonsense I encountered in PIT on Monday. Three guys in front of me. Two were clearly not TT/PreCheck eligible and the third guy took forever to get his smart phone to produce the correct boarding pass. None of them got the magic three beeps, yet were allowed to jump the queue while I had to wait for the charade to play out.

saulblum

I feel your pain. I really do.

It must feel awful to be told by your government that you're more trustworthy than the commoners and then have to wait in line behind said commoners.

I suggest you take it up with your representatives and not whine about it here.

Ari

Doing at the back end what the airlines should be doing at the front end is still doing what the airline is supposed to be doing and is not a TSO function. If the TDCs were rejecting people from one line and directing them to another, they would, in effect, be controlling the lines up to the TDC.

I bolded the last part of your post; a TSO saying that is directly controlling who uses which line up to the TDC by distinguishing passengers that walk up to him as either in the proper line up to the TDC or not in the proper line up to the TDC and refusing to process those passengers whom he believes to be in the wrong line.

The fact that a TSO isn't physically standing at the line entrance and is instead where the line terminates doesn't mean he can't control the lines by refusing to process certain travelers unless they come from a certain line.

jtodd

Whining about "perceived" unfairness?! The government is assaulting and taking away rights of "the" people, while some people, some of which do nothing more than travel for work, are chosen to bypass the assault. That is not "perceived".

Your whining about a few people using a line they "can" use, while totally ignoring the arbitrary attack on peoples rights by the government taking place right beside you.

You must get frequent headaches from looking down that long nose all day.

Ari

Then you need to complain to the airline/airport. An unguarded PreCheck line is the same as an unguarded elite line; anyone can (not should) use it and the TDCs will just process passengers as they come. All PreCheck lines should be guarded, but that is something the airlines/airports need to do.

saulblum

Well, then, I guess those common folk improperly using the PreCheck line are just taking advantage of an opportunity to skip ahead, right?

But who's the one whining here?

Funny how that works, huh?