SWA and TSA Precheck

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . later was offered to some frequent fliers either as a courtesy by the airlines or as a marketing move by the TSA when initial enrollment wasn't as high as expected . . .

1) Yep.
2) Probably how we got ours.
3) Especially since we never paid, filled out a form, or even got fingerprinted.
4) On one trip, our tix were simply printed "TSA Pre Check", as if by magic.
5) Voilà!
. . . short lines, even at Orlando
. . . no belts or shoes to remove
. . . no jackets to remove
. . . faster than even going entering a Federal Court Building

NOTE We have been using the express Security lines at several airports for 10-12 years,
they cut down line-wait times severely, but we still had to remove belts-shoes-jackets.
With TSA Pre Check, one hardly seems to even pause.

 

[LegoMom3]

Yes, when you apply they do a background check and you also have to go for an in person interview and get finger printed. You are not guaranteed to be accepted however and don't get your money back if you are turned down. I believe this is how the program started, as something you pay for and apply for, but later was offered to some frequent fliers either as a courtesy by the airlines or as a marketing move by the TSA when initial enrollment wasn't as high as expected and they figured once you experienced it, you would be willing to pay for the privilege if that was the only way to keep that perk.

My DH flies a lot for work and was getting TSA Pre most of the time and enjoyed the convenience. We figured it was unlikely I would also get it on all of our trips together and he didn't like the idea of giving up the TSA Pre perk on those trips! Fortunately for us Boston is one of the locations that conducts interviews for the Global Entry program and it is just over an hour away if we drive in on the weekend so we applied for GE and set up a Sunday afternoon appointment in Boston. It was worth $100 each to us to make it much more likely we both get TSA Pre when we travel together over the next five years.

Very cool! Thanks LisaS! Interesting, and good to know. Right now I don't fly quite enough to look into that process, but maybe in the future! (oddly enough, I flew with my DS12 and DS14 last Sept. to see family; of the three of us, I fly way more, yet it was DS14 who got a TSA-Pre on his boarding pass! Funny system... ).

.

 

[Judyat]

Yes airlines are randomly giving out TSA pre on boarding passes which is great especially for us older flyers. Have noticed depending on the airport some say keep your laptop in the bag others have you take it out with tsa pre. Not a problem. Just enjoying not having to take off shoes.

 

[MaleficentRN]

I am a frequent flyer and have had TSA Pre-check since inception with nearly 500k miles in the last few years. Over the last year, because of mostly domestic flights, I decided to try SWA. However, I noticed even if my ticket has TSA Pre, when I go to the TSA precheck desk, the TSA agent tells me my ticket does do scan as being approved. This has happened the last 2 trips to Orlando and has ONLY happened with SWA ticketed flights. I have never had this issue with United or Jetblue. With my wife paying for TSA pre, this is unsatisfactory.

Has any else experienced this?

Do you mean you get the dreaded, "one beep"? That randomly happens and they send you to full screening. Maybe you have just been very unlucky?

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I believe that poster is confused. There is no way he and his wife are getting TSA Pre on every flight on different airlines if they have not gone through the TSA Pre or Global Entry process.

No, I doubt he is confused.

He's probably getting it for other reasons which may include (a) airline status and (b) age (the TSA seems to believe that if you are over 60 you are not a threat!)

However, he seems to be implying that others are wrong for paying.

And as for the short lines at MCO. UH??? Yeah, right that's why I still pay for FlyClear. Precheck lines are now very long there LOL!

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Yes airlines are randomly giving out TSA pre on boarding passes which is great especially for us older flyers. Have noticed depending on the airport some say keep your laptop in the bag others have you take it out with tsa pre. Not a problem. Just enjoying not having to take off shoes.

Hate to break this to you, but "airlines" aren't randomly giving it out. The TSA is. Of course if you ask the Thousands they say it's the airline so you don't yell at them when you don't get it.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

No, I doubt he is confused.

He's probably getting it for other reasons which may include (a) airline status and (b) age (the TSA seems to believe that if you are over 60 you are not a threat!)

However, he seems to be implying that others are wrong for paying.

And as for the short lines at MCO. UH??? Yeah, right that's why I still pay for FlyClear. Precheck lines are now very long there LOL!

Yes, you can get TSA Pre due to status, but this poster stated he was getting it on many different airlines. Doubtful he has high status on many airlines.

I have no idea if age is a factor.

I got my GE free due to my United Airlines status (they paid), but even if I had to pay, it would have been worth every penny! Nothing like sailing through customs and immigration after a 12 hour flight.

 

[Judyat]

Just to clarify. We are not getting TSA pre on a variety of airlines. We fly mainly Southwest and that is where we get TSA pre from. Whether it is the TSA or the airlines giving it out doesn't matter to us as long as we are getting it. Lines at our airport are not long anyway so either way is OK with us although not having to take our shoes off is nice.

 

[BigTigger]

Two items can affect your TSA pre-check on any of the 11 participating airlines, not just SWA.

1) Make sure your name is exactly the same in your airline frequetn flyer profiles and ticket bookings data as it is in your Known Traveler Number (KTN). Even one extra space will stop records from being verified.

2) Even if you have the KTN in your frequent flyer profile you need to put it into your ticket booking and reservation again as it doesn't auto-populate. If it is missing, you need to call the airline and have it updated or you won't get TSA Precheck.

Those are the only two issues I've run into on UA, JB, DL, and SWA since paying for TSA Precheck so I'd get it every time

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

......
2) Even if you have the KTN in your frequent flyer profile you need to put it into your ticket booking and reservation again as it doesn't auto-populate. .....

It does on United, at least for my husband and me.

 

[Judyat]

I guess my question is why would you want to pay for something you usually get anyway now? No it's not a guarantee but it's a pretty good bet that you will get TSA pre anyway. And if not it's not a big deal. I can take my shoes off and take out my laptop. Not a problem.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I guess my question is why would you want to pay for something you usually get anyway now? No it's not a guarantee but it's a pretty good bet that you will get TSA pre anyway. And if not it's not a big deal. I can take my shoes off and take out my laptop. Not a problem.

This is incorrect. The majority of air travelers do not get TSA Pre and the TSA is planning to limit it in the future to those who pay:

http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2024241393_prechecksecuritylimitsxml.html

 

[goofy4tink]

Ok....I do believe that the OP stayed that due to govt employment, they had this program since the beginning.


So, when my boarding pass is issues, and printed at home, the TSA has a finger in it and that's how I'm getting TSA pre-check? Yes, when you get to the TSA checkpoint, you can get lucky and be sent to the pre-check line. I've been getting more often lately. However, on my flight from Boston to San Diego in Dec, my dh got pre-check, and I didn't. I was more than a bit annoyed. However.....I beat him by 5 mins! The TSA was sending so many people to that line, it was filled with people that had no clue what to do.....including my dh!

 

[Judyat]

This is incorrect. The majority of air travelers do not get TSA Pre and the TSA is planning to limit it in the future to those who pay:

http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2024241393_prechecksecuritylimitsxml.html

Interesting. That article is from August and I am still getting TSA pre. Most recently December 16 coming back from Orlando so they are not cutting back yet.

 

[nkereina]

Out of curiosity (not to derail the topic), but does anyone know what scenarios someone is denied the TSA Precheck when applying for it? I'll be traveling for work more frequently and can probably get the application cost covered by work. But I'd hate to go through the process only to get declined.

 

[LisaS]

Out of curiosity (not to derail the topic), but does anyone know what scenarios someone is denied the TSA Precheck when applying for it? I'll be traveling for work more frequently and can probably get the application cost covered by work. But I'd hate to go through the process only to get declined.

There is a list of things that would disqualify an applicant on this page of the TSA Pre website: http://www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck/eligibility-requirements

This article on USA Today's website confirms what I read in some posts on flyertalk, namely that if someone has ever been arrested, even decades ago as a teenager for doing something stupid, it can be used as a reason to disqualify someone:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/2014/06/30/tsa-pre-check-rejected/11722517/

 

[nkereina]

There is a list of things that would disqualify an applicant on this page of the TSA Pre website: http://www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck/eligibility-requirements

This article on USA Today's website confirms what I read in some posts on flyertalk, namely that if someone has ever been arrested, even decades ago as a teenager for doing something stupid, it can be used as a reason to disqualify someone:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/2014/06/30/tsa-pre-check-rejected/11722517/

Thanks for the link!