My understanding is you can pay a fee to get precheck status. Flying to Puerto Rico an my 16 year olds boarding pass has TSA precheck marked. They were gonna let him in a separate line. We all stayed together. But how did he accidentally get this? We didn't pay a fee.

Before I had Global Entry I had that happen a few times. I believe it is meant to spread out the lines at security.

It happens randomly.

Currently working on a stretch of about 5 in a row. No idea why, but I like the trend.

Yep, I have had it randomly a few times despite never having been through the process.

Airlines can allocate a specific number to passengers in a time period. It was a lot more prevalent but they've rolled it back a bit.

Oh okay. Thanks for the replies. I had no idea they handed it out randomly.

The airlines hand out TSA precheck like candy.

If one person in your group has it & the precheck line isn't busy, they will usually let you go together as well.

Wife and I got it free a couple of times and just felt like it was bait, like a drug dealer freebie.

Worked on us, we both went through the process and paid our fees.

It is great as usually the line is short or none.

quote:

Originally posted by mrw:
The airlines hand out TSA precheck like candy.

And they shouldn't, all it does is fuck the lines up.

More security theater......what value is having a more rigorous background check for PRE travelers when its randomly handed out? I have PRE/GlobalPass and very much mind how its done for all.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeGLI:

quote:

Originally posted by mrw:
The airlines hand out TSA precheck like candy.

And they shouldn't, all it does is fuck the lines up.

This. They hand it out randomly and the airlines will even randomly assign you recheck occasionally when you print your boarding pass (happened to my GF last time we traveled.

It does mess up the pre-check line badly. People who have no idea what pre-check is start taking their shoes and belts off and holding up the line. TSA starts yelling at them to leave everything on, then they start asking all kinds of questions. It's a shit show, there are days they hand out so many random pre-checks the normal line is shorter. The latest thing is clear. You pay a fee basically get recheck but can cut the entire line. Love the looks those folks get when they are escorted in front of everyone.

quote:

Originally posted by snidera:
If one person in your group has it & the precheck line isn't busy, they will usually let you go together as well.

Uhhh, yeah, no. Not in my experience. If you don't have precheck on your boarding pass, you ain't going through precheck.

quote:

Originally posted by LBAR15:

It does mess up the pre-check line badly. People who have no idea what pre-check is start taking their shoes and belts off and holding up the line. TSA starts yelling at them to leave everything on, then they start asking all kinds of questions.

I always remove my belt and boots through precheck because I have a large metal belt buckle and cowboy boots that always set off the metal detector.

I've gotten to the point now where I tell people frankly to mind their own business when they presume to think they know better than me how I should go through a tsa security line like I don't do it over 50 times a year.

quote:

Originally posted by frayedends:
Oh okay. Thanks for the replies. I had no idea they handed it out randomly.

I have Global Entry so I have TSA Pre-Check by default but before I had it, I got TSA pre-check once in a while as they do offer it randomly to passengers they screen.

I signed up for it, but had it the last previous time I had flown. I think my age had a lot to do with it.

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
Yep, I have had it randomly a few times despite never having been through the process.

Conversely I paid the $85 TSA pre check screening in June 2017 and haven't had Pre check on any of the dozen flights I've taken since.

I heard that as of last May they were going to stop randomly giving it out except to passengers older than some age and younger than some age. I have not known anyone who does not pay for it to get it randomly since about that time, again so long as they aren't young or old. I don't know what the ages are.

It is a scam. Everyone should be precheck all the time. It is a scam invented to make money. i refuse to pay it because I am not in the business of paying the government to prove my innocence. Especially not the fucking TSA. Plus a lot of times anymore the precheck line is as long as the regular line and here in ATL at peak times they use bomb sniffing dogs and so everyone gets precheck treatment anyways. My company would even pay for it but TSA can go fuck themselves. I'm not going to let them bully me.

quote:

Originally posted by Russ59:

quote:

Originally posted by TXJIM:
Yep, I have had it randomly a few times despite never having been through the process.

Conversely I paid the $85 TSA pre check screening in June 2017 and haven't had Pre check on any of the dozen flights I've taken since.

You must be doing something wrong then.

You should've been given a known traveller number which you should be supplying to the airline every time you book a flight.

Or you're flying with an airline that doesn't participate in the program.

Otherwise, if you passed the screening, you should get precheck every single time.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Balzé Halzé,

We get it randomly as well. Here lately, every time that we have flown I get a hand swab. Anyone have an idea why?

CW

quote:

Originally posted by Russ59:

Conversely I paid the $85 TSA pre check screening in June 2017 and haven't had Pre check on any of the dozen flights I've taken since.

Like Balze said, you need to tell the airline. For each airline I fly, I created a profile and added my known traveler number. It has worked every time, when I print out the boarding pass the day before, "TSA Pre-Check" is always printed on it. I've never had to show that card they issued me.