TSA Pre for elderly folks
 

Not sure whether this is the right place for this question but recently I took a flight on Southwest from SJC to SAN with my elderly parents. I have Global Entry but my parents do not. My parents also received TSA Pre and my question is whether they got TSA Pre because of their age or because I have Global Entry and they got TSA Pre because of me? Any explanation would be helpful.

Random inclusion.

Lots of old people randomly get TSA precheck on Southwest as they aren't as much of a risk; not because of you

Yes... this happens often.

If has ZERO to do with others.

Pre is randomly granted to just about anyone with a flying history. But if anyone is over 75 well read it here https://www.tsa.gov/travel/special-p...s-75-and-older

I find it difficult to believe that it's merely random. My parents got TSA Pre both ways flying SJC to SAN.

She's old, right? :)

Because they're old :)

We are old. I have paid for pre-check. My wife gets it 60-70% regardless of whether she is flying with me or not. As she puts it, 'I get the Midwest Gramma exemption, why should I pay for it?' TSA knows how old you are. So far, I don't think we have had any old terrorists.

I’ve gotten PreCheck randomly when I was on the same reservation as my parents (but never when traveling by myself) before I applied and paid the fee.

Since the program's inception, there have been only 3 ways a passenger can get TSA Precheck - Random, Airline (eliminated), and Enrollment. Since this is not the case of enrollment, random is the only explanation.

FWIW - just because it is "random" does not really mean the chance is really random.

I can't imagine DHS would disclose its software is coded for elderly TSA Pre✓. Every 75 year-old would expect it and "random and unpredictable" remain cardinal maxims. I see fewer mobility devices, not more, in Pre✓ lanes in rush hour. But YMMV.

My Mom gets Pre and she has no GE and is 65. My Father and I have GE and get Pre 100 percent of the time. For me I am almost 35 and before the GE I was getting TSA Pre almost 100 percent of the time without paying for it on all airlines. I guess flight history has a lot to do with it. I have Frequent Flier Accounts with all the airlines I fly and I fly often enough to have a good flight history.