The pilot program starting Tuesday tests a new risk-based approach for screening passengers.
(AP) -- Select travelers going through four U.S. airports may find it easier getting through security if they volunteer more personal information to the government.
U.S. Transportation Security Administration head John Pistole says a pilot program starting Tuesday tests a new risk-based approach for screening passengers. The limited program will start at the major airports in Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas-Fort Worth and Miami.
Under the program, TSA officials will assess passengers who volunteer more information about themselves before a flight. Those passengers would be sent to security lanes for expedited screening.
"As TSA moves further away from a one-size-fits-all approach, our ultimate goal is to provide the most effective security in the most efficient way possible," said Pistole. "By learning more about travelers through information they voluntarily provide, and combining that information with our other layers of security, we can focus more resources on higher-risk and unknown passengers. This new screening system holds great potential to strengthen security while significantly enhancing the travel experience whenever possible for passengers."
Eligible participants include certain frequent flyers from American Airlines and Delta Air Lines as well as members of the Customs and Border Protection's (CBP's) Trusted Traveler programs, including Global Entry, SENTRI, and NEXUS, who are U.S. citizens and are flying on participating airlines. If successful, TSA plans to expand the pilot to include additional airlines, as well as other airports that participate in CBP's Global Entry program, once operationally ready.
Eligible passengers may be referred to a lane where they will experience expedited screening. TSA will always incorporate random and unpredictable security measures throughout the airport and no individual will be guaranteed expedited screening. TSA's multi-layered approach to security also includes behavior detection officers, explosives-detection systems, canine teams, and federal air marshals, among other measures both seen and unseen.
As part of the agency's risk-based security initiative, TSA is in the process of testing several other new screening initiatives, including a program designed to provide positive ID verification for airline pilots and the use of expanded behavior detection techniques, in addition to the recent changes in screening procedures for children.
Only through its partnership with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and CBP is TSA able to operationalize this pre-screening pilot initiative in an effort to further strengthen aviation security.
Pistole says the new program has the potential to improve the experience of travelers while allowing his agency to focus on higher-risk and unknown passengers.
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