TSA Pre Check

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

57 minutes ago, time4u2go said:

I've seen this too, where TSA Precheck can take longer than the regular lines.  

Been that way a few times at San Diego airport.  TSA agents will sometimes just open the ropes and send you over to the regular lane.  

[NotPayinExtra]

3 hours ago, poocher said:

But that’s not what OP said.  They said at the GATE  2 hours before.

No I said need to be at the gate no later then 2 hours after arriving at airport. So if I get to the airport at 9am, I need to be at the gate at 11am. Technically 11:15am. Must be at gate 30 min before flight.

[Ret MP]

35 minutes ago, ymncruise said:

I love not having to take off shoes, etc.  but in California, they made me take my small electronics out of my backpack. Didn’t have this happen in other states. 

Well........................................  Can't go on!

[Ret MP]

18 minutes ago, NotPayinExtra said:

No I said need to be at the gate no later then 2 hours after arriving at airport. So if I get to the airport at 9am, I need to be at the gate at 11am. Technically 11:15am. Must be at gate 30 min before flight.

Am I reading this backward? From what I read on several air travel "Internet" sites, to include the airlines themselves.  I read you should "arrive at the airport" anywhere from 45 minutes to 3 hours.  Depending on a lot of factors.  From what I read, that's in order to get to your gate by up to 30 minutes before your departure time, again depending on a lot of factors, you should arrive at the airport at the above stated time(s), whatever the airport and airlines suggests, it's actually very dynamic.  

 

 

[Booking It]

It's a HUGE bonus to have at O'Hare. I almost exclusively fly first class with American. At O'Hare, American first class has their own security line, and within that security line they have a pre-check line. I quite literally walk right through security. I've never had to wait. This makes it much less nerve wracking because traffic heading to O'Hare can be brutal.

[Traveling Library]

Have Global Entry and I'll never travel without it. Before I could renew my license for a real ID I used my GE card to fly (it had my full name) domestically. Also pre-check lines in BOS and ATL are always shorter and faster than the usual lines. In BHM the pre-check line was rarely open (or needed) but because I had pre-check I didn't have to remove my shoes, etc.

Re: Delta. Once my husband (who also has GE) got Pre-Check but I didn't. We went to the Delta check-in desk, showed my GE card, and after entering my birthdate (not sure why it was missing on the record but it was) she was able to get me a new boarding pass with Pre-Check.

[rudeney]

4 hours ago, buddylover said:

Ever fly out of Chicago O'Hare or LAS (Las Vegas)......been in TSA precheck lines for over an hour at each on multiple occasions.  There have been times when the regular line is shorter and we have left TSA PreCheck to go into those lines.  It really depends on time of day/date (holiday?, school break time?).  To say you have NEVER waited more than 5 minutes is really overstating TSA PreCheck....as we have NEVER gotten thru in 5 minutes when we fly.  OP, it is helpful in not having to take off shoes, belts, unloading bags etc....but you can wait in a LONG TSA PreCheck line at times too (we have!).

 

I fly to Chicago fairly regularly.  Sometimes I'm out of Midway, sometimes O'hare.  I found O'hare to be a little less efficient than Midway, but of course it's a busier airport.  Regardless, I've never taken more than about 15 minutes to get through security with Pre-Check.

 

4 hours ago, njkruzer said:

No problem using pre-check in Nashville this am.  No one ahead of us. 

 

When we flew out of Nashville on Oct. 1st, it was a little busy.  What was really annoying is they had one Pre-Check agent feeding one X-ray and metal detector, but they had three lines instead of a queue.  The agent had to try to remember which of the three lines was "next" in line and he wasn't always correct.  

[ARandomTraveler]

7 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said:

At DFW they are doing Beta testing for the next generation TSA Pre Check; facial recognition. 
I have used it twice now, it’s every bit the game changer as the original TSA Pre was at its inception. 

This is how they did Global Entry for us 2 weeks ago. Walked up to the computer, printed out a receipt with our faces on it in about 10 seconds and that was it. Only problems was that we then had to wait 30 minutes for our luggage so we still ended up waiting just like everyone else 😂 

[ARandomTraveler]

6 hours ago, ymncruise said:

I love not having to take off shoes, etc.  but in California, they made me take my small electronics out of my backpack. Didn’t have this happen in other states. 

Which airport? I fly through SFO and SJC about 8 times a year and I've never had to remove electronics. In fact the nice thing about those airports is that their technology is so updated that they don't even need your boarding pass, all they need is your ID, so you don't even have to take the phone out for that part of the process either. Maybe you had a new TSA agent. Or maybe other California airports are different than the 2 I mentioned, which is entirely possible.

 

You know which airport totally sucks for Precheck - San Juan!! Doesn't exist and they act like they've never even heard of it (or at least it didn't last time I was there in 2018). 

[ymncruise]

San Diego

[Icesk8rReedy]

I travel a lot for work and for me it is Atlanta, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, and San Franscisco.  But if you rarely travel I don't think it's worth paying the money for it.  But if you do travel frequently, I would get TSA Pre-Check and Clear.  What would have taken me 30+ minutes in just pre-check line alone literally only took me 45 seconds.  This was in Fort Lauderdale recently.

[fsufancc]

Mrs Fan and I both have GE and Pre (Thanks to one of our credit cards).  Makes things really easy.  We have not flown international since pre-pandemic but when we did, the Global Entry helped get us thru the lines.

And yes, you have to have the TSA-PRE on your boarding pass or the TSA folks won't let you in the Pre line.  Mrs Fan and I flew a few weeks back and did not realize that the TSA-PRE was not on her pass (computer glitch?).  

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

16 hours ago, ARandomTraveler said:

This is how they did Global Entry for us 2 weeks ago. Walked up to the computer, printed out a receipt with our faces on it in about 10 seconds and that was it. Only problems was that we then had to wait 30 minutes for our luggage so we still ended up waiting just like everyone else 😂 

GE kiosks have always worked that way at international airports anyway.  They also scan your fingerprints on the glass and your passport bar code.  You answer the questions on the screen and out comes the receipt.  At SFO we were off the plane and at the sidewalk in less than 30 minutes coming back from Hong Kong.  I love GE.  It saves us hours at the San Ysidro POE driving back from Baja.    

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

7 hours ago, fsufancc said:

  Mrs Fan and I flew a few weeks back and did not realize that the TSA-PRE was not on her pass (computer glitch?).  

Not a glitch, sometimes they just don't give it to you.  It doesn't happen often, but in ten years flying with TSA pre-check it's happened 1-2 times to us.  

[Tom47]

1 hour ago, ATSEAMYLIFE said:

Not a glitch, sometimes they just don't give it to you.  It doesn't happen often, but in ten years flying with TSA pre-check it's happened 1-2 times to us.  

That happened to us in Newark at a  connection, where we had to go thru TSA again.  We have NEXUS passes, $50 for 5 years, includes TSA, Global Entry, Canada/US land birder express lanes and Canada Customs airport express lanes.  Personal interview req;d at a land border location.

[smokeybandit]

If you fly once a year, Precheck is worth it.

 

 

[Seville2Cabo]

59 minutes ago, Tom47 said:

That happened to us in Newark at a  connection, where we had to go thru TSA again.  We have NEXUS passes, $50 for 5 years, includes TSA, Global Entry, Canada/US land birder express lanes and Canada Customs airport express lanes.  Personal interview req;d at a land border location.

Thought Nexus was only Mexico and Canada. 

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

39 minutes ago, Seville2Cabo said:

Thought Nexus was only Mexico and Canada. 

 Only Canada.  Mexico crossings is Sentri and GE.  

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

1 hour ago, Tom47 said:

That happened to us in Newark at a  connection, where we had to go thru TSA again.  We have NEXUS passes, $50 for 5 years, includes TSA, Global Entry, Canada/US land birder express lanes and Canada Customs airport express lanes.  Personal interview req;d at a land border location.

 I don't think NEXUS includes Global Entry.  

[Tom47]

21 minutes ago, ATSEAMYLIFE said:

 I don't think NEXUS includes Global Entry.  

It does and we have used it.

[smokeybandit]

Nexus includes global entry only at Canadian airports with USA preclearance customs

[motheroftwocats814]

I travel both domestically and internationally A LOT! I have Global Entry that has TSA built into it. Had Global Entry since the beginning. I can't think of a reason not to have it.

As for the criminal records, that is something to speak to lawyer about. 

[lovesthebeach2]

On 10/11/2022 at 1:37 AM, ARandomTraveler said:

I've had Precheck for 7 years, it's an absolute must almost everywhere. I've never waited more than 5 minutes to get through security, even at the busiest airports. 
 

Not only do you not have to take liquids out of your bag, you don't have to put them in a ziploc either. They do hold you to the 3oz limit, but my toiletry bag, and my purse, are both filled with liquids, never in a ziploc, and I've never been stopped or questioned about it once in 7 years. 
 

Shoes stay on, small jackets can stay on, laptops and electronics can stay in your bags, and you don't have to go through the security thing that has X-ray vision through your clothes (I don't think all airports have these, but DEN definitely does). 
 

For $85 it lasts 5 years. It's a major time saver and for the most part, you're in line behind seasoned travelers who are quick and know the process, so you're not waiting for the TSA agent to explain every step to everyone in front of you. Most Precheck people know to have their ID and ticket ready, or at some airports, just your ID. They're efficient with putting their bags on the conveyor, they know what they do and don't need to remove from bags and pockets, and we're in-and-out of there in minutes.
 

Of course there's always someone who doesn't know what they're doing (I personally think anyone who ends up needing an instruction from an agent, or anyone who gets sent back for having something in their pockets should lose their Precheck for their next flight, but I digress). All of that just makes the process so fast. 

I’ve had pre-check for many years and I never realized we don’t need to put liquids in Ziploc bags.  I still do that!  I hesitate to try that in case I get stopped.  You’ve never had them stop you?

 

I recently had to take my iPad out in a pre-check line though. I guess it depends on the airport?

[ARandomTraveler]

1 hour ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

I’ve had pre-check for many years and I never realized we don’t need to put liquids in Ziploc bags.  I still do that!  I hesitate to try that in case I get stopped.  You’ve never had them stop you?

 

I recently had to take my iPad out in a pre-check line though. I guess it depends on the airport?

Never. I have a bunch of 3oz containers filled with shampoo, conditioner, body wash, micellar water, face wash, face lotion, face sunscreen, mouthwash, toothpaste (not sure if the toothpaste counts as a liquid), body lotion, sometimes I have aloe gel, Morrocan hair oil, hair cream, mousse, face primer, foundation makeup, lysol, liquid laundry detergent. I keep all of this in a hanging toiletry bag that has 4 different zippered sections. None of it is contained in a ziploc, and they've never so much as even opened up the toiletry bag. 
 

On top of this, I always have a purse or backpack that has small bottles of hand sanitizer, hand lotion, and whatever other random creams and glosses in them. They're floating around in various pockets or makeup bags. They've never looked inside of any of them.

 

I fly a lot. In the last month I've gone through airport security for 5 different flights. Maybe I'm lucky, but I doubt it. My bag has been flagged for random check twice that I can think of in the last several years, and they've never opened up any of the bags that have the liquids in them. They just waive that wand over them that looks for bomb powder and take a quick peek inside the bag to see it's visible contents.

[lovesthebeach2]

1 hour ago, ARandomTraveler said:

Never. I have a bunch of 3oz containers filled with shampoo, conditioner, body wash, micellar water, face wash, face lotion, face sunscreen, mouthwash, toothpaste (not sure if the toothpaste counts as a liquid), body lotion, sometimes I have aloe gel, Morrocan hair oil, hair cream, mousse, face primer, foundation makeup, lysol, liquid laundry detergent. I keep all of this in a hanging toiletry bag that has 4 different zippered sections. None of it is contained in a ziploc, and they've never so much as even opened up the toiletry bag. 
 

On top of this, I always have a purse or backpack that has small bottles of hand sanitizer, hand lotion, and whatever other random creams and glosses in them. They're floating around in various pockets or makeup bags. They've never looked inside of any of them.

 

I fly a lot. In the last month I've gone through airport security for 5 different flights. Maybe I'm lucky, but I doubt it. My bag has been flagged for random check twice that I can think of in the last several years, and they've never opened up any of the bags that have the liquids in them. They just waive that wand over them that looks for bomb powder and take a quick peek inside the bag to see it's visible contents.

Thanks, I’ll try it next time we fly. I have a small zippered carrier that I keep all my 3oz bottles in along with other things, so it will be much easier to just leave them.