At JFK? No.
There were 3 line entry points. Precheck signed, priority signed and 'normal'.
There was a TSO directing random people from the start of the normal line towards either the precheck side or the normal side.

Each side had 2 TDCs. The precheck side had a ETD post set up with a number of TSO's operating it after the line split and before the TDCs.

The metal detector at the Precheck lane in IAH Terminal A is extremely sensitive, with my belt (leather, metal buckle but not big) and shoes (leather dress shoes) setting it off. Both go into the X-ray. It's fun when I have to go through there because people see me in the precheck lane and assume I'm somebody who got diverted into the lane and doesn't have a clue (two laptops so one needs to go in a bin, plus the shoes and belt being taken off).

None of the other terminals (in my experience, although it's mainly been terminal C) at IAH, nor any other airport with Precheck I've been to, are sensitive enough for those same items to set them off.

I keep both mine in my backpack, but I've got one of those "checkpoint friendly" style ones that I use for travel. The smaller one goes in the main area of the backpack, the bigger one goes in the lay-flat zip-out portion.

I guess since they're not on top of each other, I don't get hassled.

Do you mean that, if the WTMD beeps on a crew member, TSA ignores the beep?

The WTMD indicates whether or not it's a "random" alarm, though; it displays "RAND" or something like that. IME the beep is somewhat delayed (about a second), compared to the immediate beep for metal, but I doubt it's very often that someone tailgates so closely that they get hit with the "random" alarm for the prior person through.

I could see TSA ignoring a "random" alarm for a crew member if they know it's truly a random alarm; that wouldn't surprise me at all.

Yes, crew members are exempt from random alarms.

I was subject to the hand swabbing because there were random alarms but crew members set them off. So they had to attend to the random with the first available non-crew member.

Well, that's about as "logical" as anything else the TSA does. :rolleyes: "Ooh, it beeped for the crew member! So subject the next person in line to it..."

I had it at ORD. Nothing in my pockets. I got the nudeoscope and full pat down. Not happy.

Random beep at Pre-Check at ORD (UA) this morning. Told new procedure was the nude-o-scope. Told them to forget it. Give me my stuff back and I'll leave.

The sup then asked if the swab was okay. Fine with that. ^

Iluv2fly,
You have more courage than I do!

"Random" alarms in the pre-check line are now happening at SEA. I observed it happening at checkpoints 3 and 4 (not sure about the other CP's but my best guess is that its going on throughout the airport. Can't confirm that though). When the random alarm hits, they are directing people through the NOS :(

Also, I've seen the alarm go off on two people in a row at PDX. So if the person in front of you gets the random alarm, don't assume you are necessarily safe from avoiding it.

...and TSA still hasn't responded to the 5,000+ public comments on the NOS NPRM.

I have seen a significant increase in "random" WTMD alarms recently, with the selectee steered to the AIT scanner. When it happened to me this week, I refused the machine and got a patdown. No genital grope or karate chop though, and they didn't search my bags even though they said they were going to.

I set off the metal detector alarm at the PreCheck line at SEA on 10/22 and I was allowed to try again after taking my wallet out of my pocket... no one suggested I needed to go to the body scanner.

It was my brand new SPG Plat for Life card which I had put in my wallet..it's made of metal and it was the reason the alarm went off. So I now know I can't carry it in my wallet when I travel (which is kind of unfortunate).

Looks like you were fortunate not to encounter a martinet.