TSA SECURE FLIGHT

Passenger Identity Verification Program

Updated as of July 20, 2009

 

Q:           What is Secure Flight?

A:            Secure Flight is a program administered by the Transportation Security Administration in which air travelers are matched to a list of suspected terrorists  If a positive match occurs, the traveler is not permitted to fly.

 

Q:           What additional information is required about the passenger in order to comply with Secure Flight?

A:            When the program is fully implemented, a ticketing record must include the following:

·         The passengers full name as listed on a valid (not expired) government issued photo I.D. used at the airport to verify identity.  (Typically a driver’s license, passport, or State I.D.)  If the I.D. lists the passenger’s full name including middle or middle initial, that data must be included in the ticketing record.

·         The passenger’s date of birth, including year, as listed on their I.D.

·         The passenger’s gender as listed on the I.D.

 

Q:           Is it necessary for my boarding pass to reflect my complete name, including middle, if that is what appears on my photo I.D.?

A:            No.  It is only necessary for your boarding pass to closely match the name on your photo I.D.  It does not have to exactly match, including a middle name or initial, now or after the TSA Secure Flight Program is implemented by all airlines.  The exact wording from TSA concerning this policy is as follows:

 

                “Boarding passes may not always display the exact and complete name provided by the passenger when booking their travel.  The full name provided is used to perform watch list matching functions before a boarding pass is even issued, so small differences will not impact travel.”

 

                In terms of the security screening process at the airport, you will not need to change the process/procedures being followed today.

 

Q:           If its not on my boarding pass, then why collect this additional information?

A:            The Secure Flight information (full name, gender and date of birth) is being programmed as a new section of the ticketing record which has as its only purpose to convey those details to TSA, via the airline being flown, for a reference match to the suspected terrorist “no-fly” watch list.  It does not have a direct systems relationship to the passenger name as used by the airline for transit and issuance of the boarding pass.  It was approached in this manner so that the airlines could avoid the massive job of re-programming many parts of their systems ranging from frequent flyer accounts to FOP validation.  It will not be necessary for travelers to make any changes to these programs with any carrier.

 

Q:           Why is the box now appearing within the on-line booking system requiring the input of TSA Secure Flight information when I’ve already submitted it to you via your earlier request?

A:            The TSA rules set as the first phase requirement for us to be able to collect Secure Flight information with an on-line booking.  The box is appearing to demonstrate this capability for the necessary TSA certification. TSA ruled that pre-populating these fields with information collected earlier, prior to the traveler having the opportunity to input it them self, would not adequately demonstrate this capability.  You will note that after you input the information once, it is automatically added to your profile and the box will appear pre-populated with the information for future bookings.

 

Q:           The Secure Flight information box includes a Redress Number space.  What is that?

A:            If you have been falsely matched to a name on the government’s “no-fly” list; you followed a specific process to correct the situation.  This process would have culminated in the issuance of a Redress Number to prevent future misidentification and would be input in that box.  You’ll note that it does not appear as a         mandatory field since it applies in only very rare cases.

 

Q:           The Secure Flight information box appears only for the first passenger.  If more than one person is being included in the same booking, where do I input the information for the additional passenger(s)?

A:            At this time, you do not need to input that information for additional passengers since the airlines are not yet able to incorporate it into the ticketing record anyway.  The box is appearing to demonstrate the capability of our system to collect the information which is retained in the person’s profile.  Since additional passengers, do not have a full profile in our system; completion of the information is unnecessary and likely may not be known by the person completing the booking.

 

Q:           Does this additional information need to be provided for children, traveling with a parent or  guardian?

A:            Yes, all passengers including minors (17 years of age and under) must have this information included in their ticketing record and it must match any document presented at the airport to verify identity.

 

Q:           What if the child doesn’t have any type of I.D. and is traveling with their parent or guardian on a domestic   flight?

A:            In this case, the TSA rule states:

                “If a passenger is under 18 years of age and does not have a verifying identity document, TSA may on a case by case basis, authorize the minor or adult accompanying the minor to state the passenger’s full name and date of birth in lieu of providing a verifying document.”

 

Q:           Is this additional information required for travel now?

A:            No, Secure Flight includes a lengthy phase in period to allow for the significant re-programming of the airline industry computer systems necessary to manage this new process.

 

Q:           Will I need to input this additional information each time I book a flight?

A:            No, you will only need to provide this information once and it will be included in you traveler profile data and transmitted, when required, for each booking.

 

Q:           What will I need?

A:            You will need to provide three pieces of additional information listed below:

 

·         Complete name, exactly as it appears on government issued photo I.D.

·         Gender as it appears on you government issued photo I.D.

·         Full date of birth as it appears on your government issued I.D.

·         Client organization with whom you’re associated.

 

Q:           Is this information sent to TSA for matching to the “No Fly” list when I check-in for a flight?

A:            No, the program requires the information to be submitted at least 72 hours before departure.  The Travel Unit’s data    system has been equipped to automatically meet this requirement.  The information must be transmitted immediately upon ticketing for individuals booking within 72 hours of departure.

 

Q:           Will the Travel Unit transmit the information directly to TSA?

A:            No, to maintain a secure link, only airlines are allowed to transmit this information to TSA.  The Travel Unit will transmit it to the airline that is ticketed for pass thru to TSA.

 

Q:           Does a passenger have to provide this information in order to have a ticket issued?

A:            No, the traveler can refuse to disclose this information.  The ticket can still be issued but they will not be permitted to obtain an advance seat assignment, check-in on-line and will likely incur a delay at the airport for additional security   screening procedures.

 

Q:           Will a traveler be able to update their own profile with this information within the Travel Unit’s

                On-line Booking System?

A:            Yes, this information is now being collected on the last screen of each on-line booking.  After input, it is retained in your traveler profile and will automatically populate for future bookings. 

 

Q:           When will transmission of this information become mandatory?

A:            Due to security concerns the TSA will not disclose the actual timetable when transmission of this additional information with a ticketing record will become mandatory.  It is being phased in gradually by individual airlines and currently operates as a voluntary program for a limited number of tickets.  This voluntary phase will continue in order  to provide time for testing and bugs to be worked out of the system.  Transition to a mandatory phase will then be implemented by individual airlines to be complete by March, 2010.  The following schedule is the only information released concerning implementation:

 

                                                Starting July 15^th                   Voluntary collection and transmission of full passenger name.

 

                                                Starting August 15^th            Voluntary collection and transmission of full name, gender and

                                                                                                date of birth.

 

                At an undisclosed time, between August 15^th and early 2010, when TSA determines the system is operating smoothly, it will be converted to a mandatory requirement.  Therefore, August 15^th should be considered the date that   the additional information should be included in a traveler’s profile to provide assurance that any flight check-in inconvenience does not occur at the airport.

 

Q:           What if a traveler’s profile has a positive match to the “No Fly” list?

A:            The TSA’s system will automatically flag the ticketing record as such.  This will prohibit on-line check-in and at the very least cause a delay at the airport for the risk potential of the passenger to be resolved before and if boarding is permitted.  It’s possible that the traveler may be denied travel, in this circumstance.

 

Q:           What should the traveler do if this occurs?

A:            This is very serious but very rare circumstance.  In the last 10,000 airline tickets issued by the Travel Unit, only four have encountered a positive match to the no-fly list under the current procedures.  Each was due to an extremely  similar name to the traveler being on the list which is what Secure Flight is intended to reduce based on the expanded information used in the match process.

 

                If a positive match occurs, the TSA has established specific procedures for corrections that can be provided  by the Travel Unit or can be found on the TSA’s office website.  Once TSA researches and approves the correction, the traveler will be provided a unique Redress Number which is transmitted along with the other information in the ticketing record to avoid future positive matches.

 

                Any traveler who has been through this process and already has a Redress Number should provide it to the Travel Unit along with the other three additional information items.  It will be stored and automatically transmitted with each ticketing record.

 

 

 

Please contact any of the agents in the Travel Unit with questions not covered in the above Q & A.

 

Thank You.