TSA to speed screening for frequent fliers in October

The Transportation Security Administration next month plans to let certain frequent fliers keep on their shoes and speed through a reserved intake lane as part of an attempt to focus attention on higher-risk passengers, TSA Administrator John Pistole said on Monday.

The Trusted Traveler test, which was first announced in July, is viewed by some observers as a move away from superfluous pat downs of government officials and others for whom airlines already have substantial data, in favor of more common sense approaches to thwarting terrorist attacks.

"We have a higher level of confidence in those people because we know who they are," Pistole said during remarks on advances in airport security in the decade since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "If you've been flying for 25 years -- it's possible you're a terrorist but it's not likely," he told an audience including researchers, policymakers and contractors at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Starting in October, Pistole said, the benefits for enrolled participants will be expedited passage through a dedicated lane, as well as exemptions from removing footwear and taking laptops out of carrying cases.

Select frequent fliers who share extra personal information with Delta Air Lines will be eligible for the "proof of concept" tests at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County airports, TSA officials have said. At Miami International and Dallas Fort Worth International airports, certain frequent fliers from American Airlines will be able to join the program after supplying the additional information.

The initiative also will accept some participants in Global Entry, a Customs and Border Protection identification program for international travelers arriving in the United States, according to TSA officials. Fliers in the CBP program already have undergone background checks to be eligible for using automated kiosks that scan their fingertips for clearance.

"We have a higher level of confidence in those people because we know who they are," Pistole said, acknowledging that still, "it's not a guarantee."

He mentioned the possibility of allowing people with government clearances into Trusted Traveler as well.

Under the new TSA program, enrolled passengers will receive boarding passes embedded with identifying information. TSA officers who scan these passes at checkpoints can direct the fliers to a special lane for the new procedures, but they still may subject them to various random screening measures, according to agency officials.

When the pilot is fully operational, TSA expects to roll it out through United Airlines, Southwest, JetBlue, US Airways, Alaska Airlines, and Hawaiian Airlines at additional airports.