TravelingForMiles.com may receive commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on TravelingForMiles.com are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. TravelingForMiles.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers.
Some links to products and travel providers on this website will earn Traveling For Miles a commission which helps contribute to the running of the site – I’m very grateful to anyone who uses these links but their use is entirely optional. The compensation does not impact how and where products appear on this site and does not impact reviews that are published.
Ok, I’m more than a little late with this news (I’m still catching up from my trips) but I thought it was worth posting anyway.
It’s not much of a secret that the TSA isn’t held in the highest esteem in the US – when you’re in charge of security and you fail 95% of airport security tests you really only have yourself to blame – and US carriers have been moving to do what they can to improve the plight of their customers who have just about had enough of airport security.
American Airlines has already announced that it will be teaming up with the TSA to begin installing new screening technology at a number of US airports this fall (which the airline hopes will significantly cut waiting times) and Delta has been installing “30% faster” lanes at some of its hubs to speed things up. Now it’s United’s turn.
United Airlines and the TSA have announced a plan to “modernize security” at a number of the airline’s hubs as part of a joint initiative to improve the overall screening experience for customers.
The plan will see the partners install state-of-the-art automated security lanes, open permanent TSA Precheck enrollment centers at convenient locations and redesign security checkpoints at several of the airline’s busiest hubs.
The automated screening lanes will first appear at Newark Airport this fall and, when the installation work is complete, the security checkpoint in Terminal C will house a total of 17 automated lanes. The work at Newark will be followed up with similar installations in Chicago and Los Angeles later this year.
What’s So Special About The New Lanes?
Per United:
The new lanes enable up to five customers to fill their individual bins simultaneously and move through the screening process quicker, even if TSA agents need to perform additional screening on a customer further up the queue. The lanes also utilize a parallel conveyor system that automatically returns empty bins to the front of the queue.
How Will United “Modernize” Security Checkpoints?
Per United:
United is building and redesigning checkpoints at several hubs throughout the airline’s network that will dramatically improve the customer experience. Key initiatives include:
- Installing audio and visual enhancements utilizing cutting-edge technology in the security queuing area to provide customers with more information.
- Consolidating four checkpoints into one new, centralized checkpoint at Newark Liberty.
- Redesigning security checkpoints at Chicago O’Hare.
- Constructing a new, state-of-the-art customer check-in area and a consolidated security screening checkpoint in Terminal 7 at Los Angeles International Airport.
Image reproduced courtesy of Wiki Commons Media
New TSA Precheck Enrolment Centers
In an attempt to ease the pressure at overcrowded airports, and to make things more convenient for passengers, United and the TSA are looking to open up TSA Precheck enrolment centers in cities rather than at airports.
A temporary TSA Precheck enrolment center has already been opened in Penn Station NYC and a further temporary center will be opened in the Willis Tower (Chicago) this August.
Later this year permanent enrolment centers will be opened at United’s hubs in Chicago, Newark, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Examples of such centers already exist at Denver and Washington-Dulles airports.
Last but not least, later this year United will be allowing its MileagePlus members to redeem miles rather than pay for TSA Precheck and United are charging 10,000 MileagePlus miles for the service.
PreCheck costs $85 and I value MileagePlus miles at around 1.35 cents each (making 10,000 miles = $135) so I don’t see this as being a particularly good idea. Of course, if you happen to be swimming in miles and you can’t use them up quicker than you’re earning them, then that puts a different slant on things….why part with cash when you won’t miss 10,000 miles?
Bottom Line
Anything that improves wait-times at airport security is a bonus but, if all of this is to have much of an impact, there needs to be some serious investment into training at the TSA to make sure that there’s a purpose to their existence in the first place.
The biggest question a lot of travelers have had recently is why are we putting up with all of this incredible inconvenience in the name of increased security if the reality is that security isn’t actually increased (or even effective) at all?
When someone addresses that issue we’ll all be a lot better off.
