By now, if you live in the states, you are probably aware and may have experienced the huge security lines snaking around major US airports.
It is now quite common to have security lines over an hour long; with no relief in sight as the peak summer travel season is underway.
What’s the cause?
While the TSA insists the long lines are due to the lack of funding, the reality is TSA prematurely cut staff numbers based off rosy projections that many Americans would sign up for TSA precheck, a service which allows passengers to undergo expedited security checks.
What they failed to realize was that $85 is quite a bit of change for the casual traveler who takes a couple trips a year.
As a result, the regular security lines are filled to the brim, with less TSA agents handling security. Another compounding factor is the TSA traditionally using scheduled rotations without taking into account factors on the ground, which means if flight delays happen lines can quickly be overburdened.
How do I get around the long lines?
Sign up for Global Entry
You may have heard of TSA Precheck, but for only $15 more you can get Global Entry, which allows you to have expedited access through immigration and also allows you to use the TSA pre-check line.
Global Entry usually costs $100 and is valid for five years. However, many credit cards, such as the American Express Platinum card and the Citi Prestige card, offer a $100 Global Entry fee credit, so your effective cost is $0.
Reports are coming in that wait times for an interview are currently running around 1-2 months, so if you’re flying out in the next couple weeks, you may be out of luck.
Use Any Elite Status Card
Now this is a grey area and YMMV, but most airports have premier access lines, which are typically reserved for those with business class tickets and elite status holders. Technically, you’re only supposed to have access to the premier line if you hold elite status on your ticketed airline.
However, in practice it seems like as long as you have elite status with any airline, usually you can flash your elite status card and the line agent will waive you through. There are even reports of passengers flashing an obscure airline base level frequent flier card and being waived through by the security officer.
Since I have Global Entry, I’ve personally never used this method, but various reports from acquaintances report a near 100% success rate. Now again this is extremely YMMV, so I’d suggest only trying this if you’re close to missing your flight.
