Yeah, this is one of them. :confused:

Elite passengfers do not skip security. They go throught he security, but can get through faster if there is an elite line. They may have more carry on baggage allowance too. I am not sure if the new crazy rules are more relaxed for elites.

You are darned right. We skmped on everything and saved, just so that we could travel and maintain our elite status, now 4 Platinums. Rewally, we would never eat anything at airports cause we couldn't afford it. It's a myth that only the rich are elites.

Actually, shutting down the elite lines is one of the better ways I can think of to bring this lunacy to a quick and merciful end. Nothing like subjecting your best customers to a 2 or 3 hour line to get the airlines behind ending this garbage as revenue starts to plummet.

The current system seems like a good compromise from the weeks immediately following 9/11. Some airports set up security checkpoints (not just security lines) just for elites. Those checkpoints were underutilized most of the time since elites were not always coming through enough at a fast enough pace and no one else could use these checkpoints.

Now the elites can enter the security checkpoint at the front of the line in many airports but everyone uses the same checkpoints. The TSA people are used more efficiently in this case.

Seems to me to be a no-brainer to keep the system as is. The airlines were the ones who originally fought for it on their elites' behalf. I think they would fight again.

This is just part and parcel of the hysterical, fear-mongering atmosphere that rules. Sickeningly poor journalism.

I'd say that the Washington Times favors them.

The airlines better lobby hard and strong to keep these things in the place. The US has a dynamic economy and someone will think of a solution to help high-end customers if they feel hassled. Air Taxi services are just around the corner--this service could, potentially, hurt the network carriers.

Very true.

What the Times author doesn't understand is that this is controlled by the airlines, not the TSA.

The TSA could care less which lane you go through at what time (with exceptionSSSS). It's the airlines and airports that put you in the line.

This cost-free perk is not something the airlines will cave in on.

I oppose the free parking Congresscritters get at DCA. As a taxpayer, I object to them receiving such a perk while I pay their salary and have to pay for my own parking.

Let the Congresscritters park their cars in the garage and pay the going rate like everyone else.

"That's hardly fair." Closing with "It's not clear why people should be able to buy their way out of line." Did they pull this from a high school paper?

It might be a myth that only the rich are elites, but please, elites are much more likely to be rich. How many minimum wage employers do you know who send their employees on 75k+ miles per year? How many poor people do you know who spend a few thousand a year with one airline. I'm certainly not against elite lines and really could care less what one newspaper editorial said, but to act as if elite passengers have the same demographics as society in general is just silly.

Sadly, acting as though airline passengers have the same demographics as society in general is erroneous.

Does anyone have the email address of the reporter who wrote the story or his/her editor? I think our emails went to their general 'letters to the editor' mailbox, which might not hit the message home as effectively as emailing the people involved directly.

You only need 25,000 miles with most airlines to be eilte. Some airports/airlines allow elites with this level to have their own line. Some require 50,000 miles.

From the info on this board and my personal knack for finding good deals, it doesn't take one very long to accumulate 25,000 EQM's for very much. Three round trips from SYR to SEA with the latest offer from DL and you have it - under $500 including parking, food in the terminal and other incidental expenses. Whether someone who doesn't fly very often would even want to do this is another story. But then they spend that much just on one domestic coach ticket when they could have spent that same amount of money to earn elite status and enough RDM's to get a free ticket through the miles. YMMV of course but you get the point.

Most of the general public doesn't know/care what an elite flyer is. But I think that you don't need to be at one of the extreme scales (in your words "rich" or "poor") to be or not be elite. I would venture to guess that well over half the elites are considered middle class, not rich. I am Gold elite and I know that is true for me.

Since it was a newspaper editorial it is kept separate, as I understand newspaper operations, from the regular reporting section. According to the Post's website the editor of the editorial page, Fred Hiat, reports directly to the Chairman of the Board of the company. So a Letter to the Editor would be the appropriate place to send a response to an editorial. However, although it is a separate area of the newspaper, I'm going to forward my letter to Keith Alexander who writes the Business Class column since he writes about a lot of these issues.