Photo ID and Reservation

[DISYAIYAI]

I booked two tickets on Delta back in August for flights next February. When you book on line at Delta the first form you fill out is passenger information and there is only a line for first name and last name. No space for middle name. The second form you fill out is the TSA security form and this form states that all information must match exactly with your ID.

When you print out your itinerary and confirmation it only shows your first and last name. No middle name. We will be using our passports for ID and they include our middle names.

I called Delta and spoke with a reservation agent and she said that it did not matter that the name on my reservation did not include my middle name, as long as I included it on the form with the TSA information.

This makes me nervous. I have not flown this year and I do know that there were some security changes made regarding names etc. Everyone keeps saying make sure your tickets match your ID. When I print out our boarding passes will it show our full names?

I guess I am over reacting, just want to make sure we have the right documentation.

 

[msmayor]

The Delta reservationist is right....just make sure the ID you use matches your Secure Flight information you enter to comply with TSA regulations.

My daughter just flew home on Delta four days ago from college, and her ticket confirmation did NOT match her license exactly; Delta took her middle name and combined it with her first name, running all the letters together. Didn't match her license which clearly showed only her middle initial.

She had no trouble at all clearing security.

 

[DISYAIYAI]

Thanks msmayor. I am just confused because when you buy tickets on other websites the first form you fill out asks for middle name. Delta's doesn't. Maybe they haven't updated as yet.

Anyway, I feel better now.

Thanks again.

 

[AlexDurrani]

I've talked to continental and read tsa site and they both say that due space limitation on many boarding passes they realise that airlines can't provide all the information on the bp's to verify the full name. As long as the first and last name matches exactly to your ID minus the obvious addition of middle initial you will be fine. It was like that last year when I flew swa to Orlando.

 

[CPT Tripss]

"Secure Flight" requiring the matching info is relatively new. I wouldn't count on last year's experience being today's reality. That said, from TSA website

At the security checkpoint, TSA strives to ensure your identification and boarding pass are authentic and validate you are who you say you are. Small differences in the name on the boarding pass and ID, like middle initials, should not impact your travel. It is not uncommon for the information printed on boarding passes to differ slightly from the information on IDs, depending on the boarding pass printing practices of individual airlines.

http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/secureflight/