JennDeau

Hi,

My husband, my 2 y/o daughter and I recently traveled to the US from China. My husband has an American passport, my daughter and I travel on UK passports.

We flew from PVG – SFO – EWR – ORD – LAS – SFO – PVG with the unfriendly skies.

I was SSSS for all domestic flights except one ORD – LAS, but I had already been 4S’d earlier in the day at EWR. I was also 4S’d twice in one day LAS –SFO –PVG. My 2 y/o daughter was 4 S’d twice SFO – EWR and LAS –SFO.

My husband was never given 4S. However as our daughter was 4S’d at LAS, he was told that he had to go through the special perks line as well and had to have all the fun and privileges of that a 4S boarding pass provides one with.(We are thinking that isn’t true? Does anyone have any thoughts on that?)

Obviously my 4S’ aren’t random, like you don’t need to a statistician to work that out! I think that it based on being a foreign national and buying a country different to my nationality? I am not sure though why my 2 yo only had half the screenings that I had though?

Have other foreign nationals also receive this treatment traveling within the US?

Does anybody have any ideas as to where I can complain about this harassment? I presume, I start with UA?

If I have been 4S'd all the way this time, is it likely I will be targetted in the future?? I am obviously never going to fly UA again, but I wonder what happens with TSA?

TIA!

Markie

No I have not had that experience and I carry a British passport.

I have been SSSS once, and that was when UA rebooked me and so I appeared to have a one-way same day purchase ticket - a guarantee for an SSSS.

n5667

Anyone under the age of 12 should be exempted from screening, otherwise the airline is subject to a fine. That is why your daughter may have recieved less screening than yourself.

UA may not have had much to do with designating you a 4S... basically it's a government system that the airlines handle, that way the airlines can blame the government, and we can blame the airline and no one takes any responsibility.

JennDeau

Anyone under the age of 12 should be exempted from screening, otherwise the airline is subject to a fine. That is why your daughter may have recieved less screening than yourself.

That is interesting to note, my 2 yo went thorough the whole 4S'd process twice which included being wanded and having to go through the machine that blows air and tests for whatever... I still have the boarding pass from UA with her 4S designation and I remember UA being pretty adamant that she had to go through 4S even though I told them that I thought they were being ridiculous... No one mentioned either at UA or TSA that she was exempt. She was actually pretty traumatised by the whole experience as anyone can imagine.

Do you think I write to UA or TSA to complain about 4S full screening that my 2 y/o daughter was subjected too?

GUWonder

Foreign nationals (including APIS-related passport info), travelling on tickets purchased outside of the US (including APIS-related passport info) in the absence of established patterns recognized by the CAPPSII/SecureFlight engine, and tickets with routing that originates outside of the US (including APIS-related passport info) in the absence of established patterns recognized by the CAPPSII/SecureFlight engine all increase the probability to get haraSSSSment treatment. But the mentioned triggers -- even be it related -- are distinct even if often interconnected.

Wally Bird

The 'answer' is unfortunately right there in the description. LAS. That TSA station is totally out of control.

SDF_Traveler

I didn't think "Secure Flight" was being used yet? Just the standard CAPPS system.

SDF_Traveler

GUWonder

That sounds correct as all the components developed for CAPPSII/SecureFlight have not been put into general service by the TSA or by the airlines; but components thereof are being used -- in creative ways -- both by parties widely discussed in this forum and those less often discussed.

There also seems to have been some test access to the CAPPSII engine given to certain UK entities.

trekkie

when i travelled to the USA in JUly 2005, i wasn't ssssed at all during my 3 domestic flights. I did however did my best not to trouble the agents and i think that work to a certain extent. I.E, i flew on a non-US well known US carrier and transferred to United on that same night.

I bought what is known to reservations as a "circle" trip. i had a strange feeling that it was because i booked my tickets 2 weeks ahead of time but at that time, it was considered more expensive as United has a policy of pricing their tickets more expensive closer to day of flight. But compared to AA, United has better tracking for baggage if it becomes lost which was what i was worried about basically.

I used the easy check-in monitors but also had to endure a few americans who decided to cut into my line to talk to a agent who was tagging bags and when i pointed it out to the offending customers i was simply brushed aside and given the impression that because im young and asian, i dun deserve any attention or service. and my flight connection was within 45 minutes.

I basically played it quiet and didnt disturb the agents and to an extent, that helped. But i had to endure discrimination from the local travelling public.

Some people do say that the sssed system to a certain extent depends on who you are dealing with. On some level, i do agree with it. At DCA airport i was threatened by a TSA supervisor who rudely and defliantly declares that unless i do as she says and take off my shoes even though they were non-profile, she was instructing that i be secondaried and go thorugh other stuff, which i won't mention here. When i flew out of the USA, i spoke to the cabin crew onboard the asian carrier and they told me that they were told by their hq that they just had to obey the tsa staff even if its unreasonable.

My point, it doesn't depend on whether you are a foreigner to be sssed but depends on the impression the check-in staff has of you and how you purchase your ticket. Whatever control you have over your travel plans, make sure you consider carefully.

Im not sure about the rule of children below 12 as TSA has refused and been reluctant to disclose or be transparent in their operations. There is no open guidelines. If you wish to complain, you have to file a TSA complaint form which some of us Fters have including myself and send it to the airport federal security director who may decide to ignore it if he so wishes.

huts

I'm an Australian, have travelled frequently to the US since the late 90's, and am now resident in California (an a working visa, i.e. not a green card). Pre-9/11 I remember being selected for additional screening (which in those days meant that my checked in luggage was actually x-rayed) when I was flying
by myself (actually, with other people but on separately-booked itinerary).

I got a couple of SSSS's in the early days of the post 9/11 program, but I haven't had one for a long time (touch wood). These days my tickets are bought in the US (mostly by my corporate travel department), and I have mid-tier status on the two airlines I fly (UA and CO), which I think helps to negate my status as a foreigner. I also have an American wife and work for a US company, but I'm not sure these are factors.