TSA’S New Secure Flight Program Now In Effect

Tuesday Tips: New Rules for Flying from Transportation Security Adminstration

The holidays are rapidly approaching and airline tickets are being purchased for visiting relatives and going on a vacation. Many nannies are getting ready to buy airplane tickets home for the holidays, so make sure to double check your ticket and reservation for this information.    The TSA has been phasing in a new program called Secure Flight Program and on November 1, airlines were to have phased out all their reservations that were made prior to October 2009.

There are changes that affect the passengers upcoming air travel when making their reservation. You are being asked your gender and birth date etc.    You must also have your identification and your airline reservation name match completely.  The Secure Flight Program is using this new system to keep those off “the watch list” to not be hassled while traveling.  If your Secure Flight Information is different then someone on the watch list with the same name you should be able to fly without issue.

The items needed when making a reservation for the Secure Flight Program are:

• Name as it appears on government-issued I.D. when traveling
• Date of Birth
• Gender
• Redress Number (if available)

The good thing for many travelers is that over the course of the past year this has been implemented in the computer reservation systems, so the change is minimal to alot of passengers.  One thing I found of interest was on the FAQ page for the program was talking about frequent flyer numbers and the new secure flight program regarding names matching etc.

Will Secure Flight affect my airline frequent flyer accounts? I have heard that if the name I use to make my reservation matches my ID but not my frequent flyer account that the airline’s frequent flyer system will not recognize my name. What should I do?
Passengers should ensure that the name used when making a reservation matches their government-issued ID used when traveling. If that name differs from the one on their frequent flyer account, passengers should consult the airline frequent flyer program regarding the process to update their frequent flyer account information.

Recent Name Change or Married?
Do you know someone getting married or you yourself are getting married?  Make sure to book your flight in your “maiden” name and not your married name.  Make sure it matches your identification and passport.  I would hate for someone to miss out on their honeymoon because their names didn’t match.

Booking Within 72 hours of a flight:
Airlines are required to provide the information to TSA 72 hours in advance of a flight so that names can be matched before boarding passes are issued. Those passengers who are booking on short notice, TSA says that airlines can submit the information as soon as a reservation is made. Passengers who don’t provide the information won’t be issued a boarding pass.

Is Secure Flight being implemented for international flights as well as domestic flights?
Yes. TSA is working closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to transition watch list matching for international flights from CBP to TSA. Implementation with covered international commercial flights into and out of the U.S. is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2010.

Now you may also be worried about your privacy with this extra information being given.  This is what it says on the FAQ page:

How do I know that the information Secure Flight collects about me will be safeguarded?
TSA takes the security of personal information very seriously. The personal data that Secure Flight proposes to collect is protected by the highest set of security protocol standards established by the federal government.
TSA takes a number of steps to guard the safety and privacy of personal information it collects about individuals. TSA’s Office of Privacy Policy and Compliance collaborates with the Chief Information Security Office (CISO) to work with program offices during the design and implementation of systems to ensure compliance with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552a.
For detailed information regarding your privacy, click here.

*items in “quotes” have been taken from the TSA website Secure Flight Program FAQ