Davvidd

Yes it is a very thorough one and that is what ICAO and the UN mandated. I think it was the US who actually pushed it thru ICAO. What surprised me is that UK being so lax about it. A few airports actually have a passport scanner at some gates but it is a more local system which would check if the passenger boarding for that flight is the same as the checked in one.
I wonder what would happen the ETIAS(EU) and the UK ETA comes into force? If they would get more strict with it?

Barciur

Is this actually accurate about the real time stuff? I have definitely put in different APIS than the one I scanned before and never had any issues. Thinking back, I actually don't remember my passport being scanned by anyone at the gate leaving the US. It was just looked at visually, no scanning involved.

Section 107

The checks against the US APIS (determining if someone can enter or exit the US) is pretty much in real-time. Checks against other countries immigration databases (for entry and exit permission) depends upon the respective country's tech.

Keep in mind that US airlines send APIS data to several times leading up to departure so determinations are made for most pax well before actual departure.

kyanar

As Section 107 implies, it's country dependant. I can say fairly confidently that at least the US and Australia are very pushy on real-time boarding eligibility checks - mostly because without said checks, the airline itself becomes ultimately liable if the passenger is determined to be essentially ineligible for entry, and their return to origin forced. Airlines are fairly averse to having to pay for such things.

Davvidd

I know for a fact that traveling to US and Australia and a few other countries, the pax cannot even check in if there is any issues with the passport scan. It could be even a British Passport and if there is a conflict on a name it does not allow to be checked in instantly.

Ari

This is what ESTA is for.

Davvidd

I think he meant that not every country still has got APIS. Or Advance Passenger Information System in place yet. Many have it and many still do not have it.

Section 107

ESTA appears to have some similarities to APIS but is a different program w very different purposes. APIS is based on passenger manifest data for persons imminently about to enter/exit, ESTA is not.

Not exactly. What I meant is other countries' API systems (which might go by other names) might or might not also be in near real time, it depends upon the respective country's tech.

i0wnj00

Not at the gate, but how about the ticket counter in the front?
On the last two international flights I took from LAX with AS, they took my passport and slid it through their keyboard at the ticket counter and at the gate, they called certain people to the gate counter for a passport check. AS did announce at the gate that everybody have their passports ready and did a visual check during boarding.

During my purchase for the tickets with AS, I skipped the prompt and warning to enter my passport information.
I think this was the reason why couldn't get mobile/email boarding pass for those trips, which is fine with me as I had a bag to chuck under the plane anyways.

Certain sites like airline accounts or third party sites like Orbitz/Concur/TripActions have fields where you can save your passport information in it, something I decline to do since there's no point in doing if I need to bring my passport with me. Doing this doesn't make the process any faster.

Got my travel history from CBP and it showed both round trips from LAX.

Davvidd

Yes true. Some have it in real time and some do not. Most of the countries now implementing it has in real time but also it depends on the cost too. Basically in real time, means that they usually use SITA for the transmission and the return. Obviously the more data they transmit, the more expensive it is. In the smaller countries they are private vendors who do the system and they of course want to make money out of it too.

Davvidd

What you are saying is theoretically what should happen. What you have heard is probably the document check at the gate. This is on International flights for verification. In reality I cannot understand how a passenger can travel without a passport check by the airline? yes these things have happened but it is not the general rule simply because on arrival the immigration is going to go after the airline and not the passenger.

i0wnj00

Those that got called probably had a carry-on (or something larger) and boarding pass and went straight to the gate. They probably used their passport (or other approved ID) to get through the TSA security check point and before the boarding process started the gate agents discovered a few outstanding passengers who didn't get their passports verified.

But of course, I don't think my CA DL or any other ID approved by the TSA will suffice when flying from another country but the idea remains the same, in order initially pass through airport security you will need passport and boarding pass, just to prove you have reason to pass through security on to the other side. I'm sure that at the gate, the agents will check to see you have a passport.

I think the airline will go after the passenger in cases where the passenger was turned away at immigration. It's not the fault of the airline that the person can't enter the country, it's the persons fault not have having a visa, the correct one for the intended purpose or just can't meet standards for entry. If a passenger managed to land in a country without the requisite check before the takeoff, that's sloppy work on the part of the airline and they should eat the cost of returning that person to the point of embarkation.

Davvidd

The regulation in most countries is that airlines should not board passengers who do not have the correct paperwork and documents. If they have and something happens at immigration on arrival then the airlines do not take responsibility. But if the passenger had expired passport or no visa for that country then the airlines take responsibility. So it is a bit surprising that airlines flying out of US is not doing it. Must be under a special understanding with eg. UK?