Marc_C
Active member
You might want to keep this in mind if you're traveling to ski this season. Starting in August, in order to board a flight in the US, it will be mandatory that the full name on the ticket *exactly* matches the name on your picture ID, along with birth date and gender. If not, you may be delayed or denied boarding. So watch out for things like first name variants and inclusion of a middle name or initial. Having "Dave" on your ticket and "David" on your ID might have been OK last year, but maybe not this year.
From a Lifehacker.com post:
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The Transport Security Administration (TSA) has launched a new program called Secure Flight that aims to better protect you, but as usual it comes with yet another annoying detail to remember when planning you travel.
When booking a flight traveling to, from or within the United States the TSA will be checking your booking information against your ID or passport. This means the full name, date of birth, and gender you use to book your flight needs to be identical to that on your identification. With many travel sites retaining your personal data for later bookings, you should start updating your accounts to make things easier when making your travel plans. If your information doesn't match, you could be delayed or denied when you arrive at your airport's security checkpoint.
The advantage of this new program is that you'll know if you're on the no-fly list immediately after trying to book a ticket. The TSA's put together a FAQ and video to help clear up any confusion over these new policies. In most cases this won't cause too much trouble, but if you're making travel plans be sure to double-check that everything matches.
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A commenter replies to clarify:
************************
To answer several questions, and fill in some blanks:
First off, Secure Flight is NOT a new program, it was actually implemented in December 2008. Individual airlines had the option of starting participation earlier rather than waiting for the upcoming MANDATORY implementation date in August of this year. This is the reason that many of the travel sites have already started asking for this additional information.
Secondly, when booking a reservation, you won't know immediately if you are the no fly list. The airline doesn't transmit the information to TSA until 72 hours prior to the scheduled departure.
Let's explore the reasoning behind Secure Flight...providing your full name as it is on a government issued ID, along with your birth date and gender becomes a relatively unique combination of information. Keep in mind that it is actually NOT legal to use a SSN as a form of identification (in case you want to argue this point, go pull out your SS card and read it). Using this information, TSA can clear the majority of travelers quickly. Others, I'm sure, get a little bit more personal attention, such as names that don't exist in any IRS records, DMV records, etc.
Several people asked about booking reservations for others: If this couldn't be accomplished, every travel agency and travel site would have to close shop. It is no different, ensure that the name of the traveler provided, matches the name on the ID provided and you [or they] should be good to go. They don't care who's paying for the ticket [although maybe they should].
It's also important to note that this requirement exists for any flight originating from, terminating in, or passing through, any American airspace.
Also note that it is not technically required that the information be collected when the initial reservation is made outside of the 72 hour window, but must be provided by the 72 hour cutoff prior to the flight departure. Any reservations made within the 72 hours will require the information be provided immediately. Individual booking agents and/or carriers may implement stricter requirements.
**************************
Here's the TSA page:
http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/secureflight/index.shtm
From a Lifehacker.com post:
****************
The Transport Security Administration (TSA) has launched a new program called Secure Flight that aims to better protect you, but as usual it comes with yet another annoying detail to remember when planning you travel.
When booking a flight traveling to, from or within the United States the TSA will be checking your booking information against your ID or passport. This means the full name, date of birth, and gender you use to book your flight needs to be identical to that on your identification. With many travel sites retaining your personal data for later bookings, you should start updating your accounts to make things easier when making your travel plans. If your information doesn't match, you could be delayed or denied when you arrive at your airport's security checkpoint.
The advantage of this new program is that you'll know if you're on the no-fly list immediately after trying to book a ticket. The TSA's put together a FAQ and video to help clear up any confusion over these new policies. In most cases this won't cause too much trouble, but if you're making travel plans be sure to double-check that everything matches.
**********************
A commenter replies to clarify:
************************
To answer several questions, and fill in some blanks:
First off, Secure Flight is NOT a new program, it was actually implemented in December 2008. Individual airlines had the option of starting participation earlier rather than waiting for the upcoming MANDATORY implementation date in August of this year. This is the reason that many of the travel sites have already started asking for this additional information.
Secondly, when booking a reservation, you won't know immediately if you are the no fly list. The airline doesn't transmit the information to TSA until 72 hours prior to the scheduled departure.
Let's explore the reasoning behind Secure Flight...providing your full name as it is on a government issued ID, along with your birth date and gender becomes a relatively unique combination of information. Keep in mind that it is actually NOT legal to use a SSN as a form of identification (in case you want to argue this point, go pull out your SS card and read it). Using this information, TSA can clear the majority of travelers quickly. Others, I'm sure, get a little bit more personal attention, such as names that don't exist in any IRS records, DMV records, etc.
Several people asked about booking reservations for others: If this couldn't be accomplished, every travel agency and travel site would have to close shop. It is no different, ensure that the name of the traveler provided, matches the name on the ID provided and you [or they] should be good to go. They don't care who's paying for the ticket [although maybe they should].
It's also important to note that this requirement exists for any flight originating from, terminating in, or passing through, any American airspace.
Also note that it is not technically required that the information be collected when the initial reservation is made outside of the 72 hour window, but must be provided by the 72 hour cutoff prior to the flight departure. Any reservations made within the 72 hours will require the information be provided immediately. Individual booking agents and/or carriers may implement stricter requirements.
**************************
Here's the TSA page:
http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/layers/secureflight/index.shtm