TheLifeOfA_NKCM

I'm wondering how Clear would go over at MSP. I've never had to wait in the airline elite line at the north checkpoint (because for some reason this is the unofficial NKCM line instead of CP 3 :P..). Just a very long walk from start to finish. I guess only time will tell.

RRDD

I wonder what "promotional" emails I will receive from Delta based on my biometric data:

* "We noticed you have a fairly common eye color. Buy these colored contact lens and stand out in the crowd."
* "People with your same hand size are buying these gloves."
* "We couldn't help but notice that you have a retina scan that is consistent with diabetic damage. Here's a link to a good doctor."

nikitta28

I've seen some pretty epic lines at MCO and crickets chirping in the clear area.

jamienbaker

Exactly. I routinely time my arrival at DEN and SFO to coincide to 15 minutes prior to boarding. With Clear + Pre I get to the gate and walk on. I'd have to skip my last meeting in both cities without Clear. Anyone questioning the merits of Clear is simply uninformed (or, only flies in the off-peak).

mtftw

I disagree. The Precheck line(s) at DEN, SFO, and LAS can be absolutely atrocious at times. DEN is my homebase and last week the Precheck line was wrapped around the divider and almost back to the starting point on the other side! If you regularly fly through any of the airports that are supported, it's well worth the money.

They also have a discount of $60/year for anyone with a Visa Signature credit card, which makes the price a very palatable $120 annually. $10/month to save myself 20+ minutes of waiting in the Precheck line 2-3x a week? No brainer. But, if you don't fly through any of their supported airports or at peak times, it has very little value.

jadenus

If this becomes a complimentary DM perk, I might sign up for it. I'm still peeved at CLEAR for the little game they played at IAH Terminal A (the terminal Delta flies out of).

Previously, only one side of the terminal had Pre. It wasn't Delta's side, but it was an easy 5 minute walk after security to the correct side. The Pre line was almost always empty, so you could walk up, get through in 30 seconds and be on your way. Then CLEAR moved in. They were always empty and things went on as they normally did.

Well, I guess the zero traffic for CLEAR didn't sit too well with them, so they convinced Houston Airport System to put a little chokepoint before you get to the non-CLEAR lanes. Now, if you're approaching the security line, you go to the pre-screener who will direct you to either Pre-Check line or the normal line. If you have CLEAR, however, you don't have to deal with that long pre-line line and can just walk right up to the CLEAR terminals.

I find the usefulness of a service to be highly suspect when the company has to resort to those sorts of tactics to drum up business.

Qwkynuf

I passed a young lady while coming in to SFO from the rental garage a couple of weeks ago, who told me (repeatedly) that Clear would let me "bypass security". I told her that I wasn't interested because I had PreCheck, and she said that Clear would "bypass" PreCheck too.

krazykanuck

While I don't have Clear, it would be helpful at IAH Terminal D because it's all international carriers that don't participate in Pre-Check.

appleguru

[rant]MCO is an infuriatingly disorganized airport.

Having a zillion individual straight queues instead of one or two "mazes" feeding the BP checkers/security lanes is crazy.

Current system is less fair (not FIFO), and less efficient (there are some lines that go unutilized at times even when others have huge queues.

The "manual" required removal and application of the ropes to the monorail is also ridiculous (at least 4-5 dedicated people who do seemingly nothing but unhook and rebook the ropes across the doors for every tram... even though the team has automatic doors. Must be a union gig :-P

And making people wait in the security area for the incoming Tram to arrive and unload instead of allowing them to queue at the doors (which are on the other side, as they should be... Is just crazy to me, and further backs up security lines.

Would take an hour of optimization to cut lines in half... Ugh. (If you can't tell, I really hate flying through MCO).[/rant]

So yes, free Clear is welcome for MCO and DEN... Close to Useless just about everywhere else currently (unless I'm missing something)

ross123

It doesn't seem too bad at my home airport (LAS). The pre-check line does move pretty fast but if you use the CLEAR terminals they will take your handprint and approve you, then the CLEAR attendent walks you over to the front of the pre-check line and you are waved through. Pre-check is pretty fast, this might save a minute or two tops.

krlcomm

What "sucks" about it? Other than the fact that it's only available in a couple of airports? It actually works quite well IMO and it's a lot less crowded than some PreCheck lines. Tell an MCO regular that it "sucks" and they'll laugh at you as they go through security in 2-3 minutes while you're stuck in the ridiculous TSA line.

jamienbaker

Save your breath. Those that claims it sucks are simply ignorant or don't value their time. You can't change the minds of people like that. Oh, and you can't claim it sucks just because it isn't at your local airport. Le Bernardin doesn't suck just because it isn't at the end of my driveway.

Porter2112

Random thoughts:

I am MCO based so my mileage may vary a bit from others. Before the days of pre-check (PC), CLEAR was great before they went bankrupt as the regular TSA lines were outrageous at peak times. CLEAR saved the day many times and totally justified my cost. They were also in a decent-enough number or airports. We have all been there when you finish your project early and try to get on an earlier flight home. You rush to the airport trying to make that flight and the TSA lines were out the door! CLEAR saved me many times and got me on that home-bound flight being able to “bypass” the long TSA lines. That’s worth it’s weight in gold right there!

MCO has a CLEAR line (non PC) as well as a CLEAR line (w/ PC).

I still pay for pre-check and CLEAR. If the pre-check line doesn’t look too long, I simply use the PC line and speed on thru. Last Monday morning, the PC line was super long so I used the PC CLEAR line and butted ahead of the long PC line but still got to stay in the PC line! This saves me a bunch of time.

So most of the time I use the PC line, but there are still enough times where the CLEAR line gets me thru faster, so I still see it’s value and pay for both each year. In some airports, the PC line isn’t open all the time depending on the time of day.

Please watch the South Park episode where Cartman buys an amusement park. Once everyone has “fast pass” for the roller coaster, then essentially NO ONE has fast pass. The lines and waits will be just as bad as before once “everyone” has pre-check. It kinda defeats the purpose. It also kinda defeats the purpose of PC when folks who never fly get a random PC. They fumble over what to do and slow the line down. Punch line: the more people get PC, the longer those lines get and less value it becomes, assuming they don’t open up more PC lines.

jamienbaker

Good post. Only difference for me is I always use Clear as I figure if I don't, it'll disappear again. Not rational, I suppose. But the agents always seem so lonely and bored. I figure I owe them a smile and a break from their boredom.

Travel safely, Jamie

Crazyhotelguy

THIS... So if you CLEAR haters want to use PRE, that is perfectly fine with me

I am happy to have the CLEAR line to myself.

I am MCO based, so CLEAR has been a life saver.