Don’t worry, should an incident occur a pre-pre-check point will be created at the entrance to the airport compound to screen potential threats as they enter.
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Apparently not a very good one! They’re cutting staff and slicing overtime budgets - part of the reason for the long lines is a paucity of security agents.
It’s really just a handout to the military-industrial complex, giving aging military hacks and terror profiteers nice retirements.
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I misread the headline and was wondering why there were snakes outside the terminals.
Sounds like an asinine ‘security’ implement the TSA would use. Next up, moats!
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Not so very long ago (a century or thereabouts), Gammas, Deltas, even Epsilons, had been conditioned to like flowers–flowers in particular and wild nature in general. The idea was to make them want to be going out into the country at every available opportunity, and so compel them to consume transport.
“And didn’t they consume transport?” asked the student.
“Quite a lot,” the D.H.C. replied. “But nothing else.”
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Flying first class is a good way to skip those long security lines.
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Long wait times are popping up at unexpected times now due to poor staff scheduling and planning for what are usually slow periods. Typical heavy times like Monday mornings and Friday afternoons are already scheduled properly. The latest episode at DIA was a couple of weeks ago on a Saturday morning with lines up to 90 mins.
Keep in mind that DIA is one of the more efficient TSA checkpoints in the country so just imagine the Charlie-Foxtrot at places like Newark, SFO, or Chicago.
I’ve had PreCheck and Global Entry for years and consider the fee a bargain considering the benefit. Yes, I resent the fact that I have to pay for the privilege of avoiding lines but I find it absolutely necessary. PreCheck itself has gotten much worse in the past year as clueless noobs fuck up the process and TSA routinely closes some checkpoints during the busiest times of the day (looking at you Houston terminal C!).
A quick reminder for all of your Conservative friends who want to blame the government for the general ineptitude that is the TSA: remember that it was Shrub Jr. who nationalized the airport security system from private (read: free market) contractors like Wackenhut when he created the Homeland Security monster.
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Agree, disagree.
I’ve tried the GE card alone when driving between WA and BC…100% useless.
I’ve also never flown with my GE card and have never been asked to produce it or otherwise show that I was GE. I’m also post-sticker era, and have never been asked for it either. I’ve used probably about 8 points of entry.
Soon enough all the filthy 99%ers will give up flying, and leave air travel to their betters. The no-fly lists will be expanded to cover any holdouts.
Physical mobility engenders social mobility, after all. Can’t have any of that!
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I guess it depends on the airport. I recently flew IND to SFO and back and never had more than a 15 minute wait in the security line. IND, of course, is a fairly small airport, but I expected SFO to have huge lines, but everyone went through quickly.
Also, you get an intensive background check, too. Extra bonus! 
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Silly, everyone knows the snakes are already on the plane.
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NextGen is the culprit behind all this. NextGen is the automated air traffic control system that the FAA has recently adopted to manage all US air traffic. It’s allowing more airplanes into and out of all airports now. Flights are now commonly stacked 1 to 2 mins apart.
More airplanes into and out of airports equals longer lines both at TSA and and all counters.
NextGen has not only caused the increased TSA lines due to increased flights it is also DESTROYING once quiet communities across the country. NextGen does not consider where it routes planes like a human flight controller once did. It routes them based on the closest most fuel efficient way to the landing strip. Basically the government has built super highways in the sky above thousands of homes without notification or consideration to noise and air pollution.
Cities and communities across the country have filed law suits against the FAA. Airlines have the FAA in their pocket. More planes in and out of airports equals big money not only for airlines but for airline manufacturers.
So, remember when you are standing in line trying to get through the TSA checkpoint, it all starts with government contractors (NextGen: Boeing, etc) and airlines trying to make a buck at the expense of communities and your time in airports.
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Don’t forget to arrive six hours early so that you can get in line for the pre-pre-pre-pre-pre-pre-check!
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The last time I was at Newark it took an hour. I complained when I got to the front of the line (where they actually check your ID) and the woman said “You’re lucky - sometime’s it’s two hours”, I rephrased my complaint and she said “Call the government”.
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Global Entry is only good for arrival to the US - not departure. For frequent crossings between US and Canada the NEXUS program is much better - especially for land crossing as there are dedicated lanes for expedited entry.
Your GE card is not used at kiosks that require passports. I too have never needed to produce my GE card as my international travel is almost exclusively via air. I have needed to show my NEXUS card every time I go to Canada as they use different kiosks (also need to show it in order to enter the NEXUS lanes at security).
How are Global Entry cards used? CBP accepts Global Entry cards for lawful U.S. entry at land and sea ports of entry. Global Entry cards have radio frequency identification, which enables their use at SENTRI and NEXUS expedited travel lanes entering the U.S. Global Entry cards are not valid for entry into Canada via the NEXUS lanes and kiosks. Global Entry cards are not accepted at Global Entry kiosks, which require passports or U.S. lawful permanent resident cards. Global Entry card holders must follow all program rules for SENTRI and NEXUS when using this card at land and sea ports of entry.
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With the fall of the USSR, the lines have moved west
I’m not sure that the fall of the USSR in 1991 has anything to do with Western bureaucracy becoming ever more oppressive and incompetent.
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I hate the “buy your way to the front of the line” paradigm, but I’ve finally hit a point that I travel enough times a year that pragmatism outweighs principle. I’m stacking Global Entry with Clear at this point, and it’s obvious why people don’t do it in general: you need to travel by air several times a year to make it worth the monetary and bureaucratic cost, and most people don’t.
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Wouldn’t it be easier for them to go east? I mean, the westernmost part of the US and the easternmost part of the former USSR are only a few klicks away from each other…
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Same here. I hate having to pay for it but the alternatives are much worse.
Yea, and getting in a fistfight!
