TSA Pre-check

[ibob52]

Do you still have to go through the body scanner or get a pat down if you have TSA pre check?

It has the same type of apparatus that the regular line use.


Those eligible and selected to participate in TSA Pre✓ are directed


to a dedicated screening lane .. where they may not need to remove:

• • Shoes
    
    
  • 3-1-1 compliant bag from carry-on
    
    
  • Laptop from bag
    
    
  • Light outerwear/jacket
    
    
  • Belt
    

 

[bookgirl]

So far all the TSA pre checks I've gone through are plain metal detectors not the body scanners. I got precheck about 1/3 of the time before I paid for it so I've done probably 4-6 airports.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

Thanks for the reply! So Global entry includes TSA pre check, correct?
We mostly fly in the US but may take a trip to Europe in the next few years. For only $15 more it may be worth it to upgrade to Global entry.
We are also like to take cruises so if cruise terminals are being added that would be great!

Yes, global entry includes pre-check. You get a trusted traveler number that you give the airlines when you book your ticket that is for pre check. Then your passport will register with the global entry kiosks at customs. You also get a global entry card for land borders.

 

[mefordis]

It has the same type of apparatus that the regular line has.

Those eligible and selected to participate in TSA Pre✓ are directed

to a dedicated screening lane .. where they may not need to remove:

• 
  
  
  • Shoes
  • 3-1-1 compliant bag from carry-on
  • Laptop from bag
  • Light outerwear/jacket
  • Belt

If it doesn't get you out of the naked body scanner or pat down then I wouldn't go through the trouble to get TSA pre screen. I would really like to avoid those things. I like the old metal detector days. I still have one little one under 12 so they don't make us do it now, but in the future it will really suck because we'll all be patted down.

 

[aprilchem]

If it doesn't get you out of the naked body scanner or pat down then I wouldn't go through the trouble to get TSA pre screen. I would really like to avoid those things. I like the old metal detector days. I still have one little one under 12 so they don't make us do it now, but in the future it will really suck because we'll all be patted down.

Are kids under 12 supposed to get out of that? I have three kids under 12; we fly a reasonable amount and they go through the body scanner. My 6 year old got a random check last time and got the pat down. It didn't bother her (the agent was a nice grandma-looking woman) so I didn't think anything of it.

 

[GrnMtnMan]

global also includes international, but from what I get, dealing with customs instead of TSA is a big pain in da buns

That wasn't the case for me, but I think it depends on where you live and what's the nearest enrollment center. I think the problem is that in some areas, the enrollment centers are booked completely for months and months, and you have to do frequent checking to get a sooner appointment, if a slot is available at all.

The flip side, which was my experience, was that appointment times were easily available, some within 48 hours. But we have three centers in the DC area (Dulles, BWI, and a downtown DC center). And my interview took less than five minutes.

 

[GrnMtnMan]

They have kiosks now at MSP. And, ALL travelers use them.

Global Entry kiosks are different than regular ones. I've experienced places that have both regular and GE kiosks, and the GE line is shorter. Plus, the CBP agent serving GE travelers has a streamlined admission process for them.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

After reading this thread, DH and I did the online enrollment yesterday and have an appointment Thursday morning! Thanks for pushing us in the right direction!

 

[dres40]

Yes, global entry includes pre-check. You get a trusted traveler number that you give the airlines when you book your ticket that is for pre check. Then your passport will register with the global entry kiosks at customs. You also get a global entry card for land borders.

Thanks so much for the clarification! Just completed our applications for Global entry, hope to schedule our interviews soon.

 

[Laz]

I fly Southwest quite a bit and pay for early check in. I usually get assigned pre-check. When I fly another airline it is usually hit or miss. Could frequency and the extra price increase the chance of getting pre-check?

 

[GrnMtnMan]

I fly Southwest quite a bit and pay for early check in. I usually get assigned pre-check. When I fly another airline it is usually hit or miss. Could frequency and the extra price increase the chance of getting pre-check?

Frequency, yes, price, no. At some point in the past TSA probably designated you a low-risk traveler. I'd guess that Southwest has that well integrated into their system, whereas other airlines don't necessarily have you on such a list.

Eventually though, pre-check will probably only be for paying/fully vetted travelers. There's legislation working its way through congress mandating this. Practically, once enough people are enrolled in the paid program, there won't be room for random or unchecked travelers.

 

[GrnMtnMan]

Here's my family's recent timeline for Global Entry application (originally posted on flyer talk):

Recent processing time for my family of 4 (2 under 10)

All of us applied on 3/2/16

All conditionally approved on 3/8 and 3/9 I applied in the afternoon, wife and kids in the evening

Interviews scheduled online for 3/18 at Dulles. 3 of us at 6 PM, 1 at 6:15. Called Dulles enrollment center after using GOES to schedule interviews to check if this how they wanted to handle a family of 4 and they said my set-up was fine.

There were available interview times at Dulles that week, but the next available at the downtown DC enrollment center was three weeks out, and it was a couple months out at BWI.

We arrived 45 minutes early for 3/18 interview. Waited 10 minutes or so to be called in. My wife was listed as guardian (or whatever) on the application, so they took her and my kids at once. I was taken by same agent after he completed the other 3. He said approval of my youngest (age 5) might take longer because his fingerprints might not be legible. Not sure what that means for us going forward.

3 of us approved on 3/18. Wife's came immediately, older child and me came at 9 PM or so
Youngest child approved 3/21 in evening.

3/25: Wife's card arrives in mail; 3/26, next 2; 3/28 youngest one's arrives

4/16: Used GE Kiosks in Nassau

 

[GrnMtnMan]

I found the article in the March 30, 2016 the Wall Street Journal that explains why some people have been getting pre-check randomly, but that effort might be scaled back:

A long wait: Fliers brace for big security lines at airports

Excerpts:

The TSA cut its airport screener staff by 10 percent in the past three years, anticipating PreCheck would speed up the process. When not enough fliers enrolled, the agency tried to make up for that shortfall by randomly placing passengers into the express lanes. But it recently scaled back that effort for fear dangerous passengers were being let through. That's when the lines started growing, up to 90 minutes in some cases.
...
Without enough members, the TSA faced a problem: PreCheck lanes were nearly deserted while other lines snaked throughout terminals. Keeping empty PreCheck lanes open was a waste of staff. But without them, passengers who paid to join would be aggravated.

So the agency created workarounds to allow passengers who hadn't been fully vetted to still get expedited screening.

Those who flew 50,000 miles a year or more with an airline sometimes got the PreCheck designation on their boarding pass at check-in. Others would randomly get it based on demographic information.

As a further step, the TSA in 2013 created a program called Managed Inclusion where it randomly pulls people out of the normal line when it grows too long. Fliers' behavior is monitored, they are screened for explosives and then allowed to use the faster PreCheck lane.
...
Then last year, two back-to-back embarrassing inspector general reports came out, highlighting TSA security lapses. One disclosed that the agency let a convicted domestic terrorist use PreCheck. The second revealed that in 67 out of 70 tests across the nation, screeners failed to find mock weapons and explosives.

In response, TSA agents stopped pulling passengers out of line unless there was an explosive-detecting canine team present. That change went into effect in September, right after the Labor Day rush.

The move forced about 10 percent of all passengers — some 70 million fliers a year — to go back to normal screening.​