TSA PreCheck, the program that allows passengers to go through airport security lines with their shoes and belts on, and their laptops in their luggage, will now be limited to those who actually have paid for it, TSA on Monday ended the program where a number of “low-risk” passengers were waved into the fast lane.
Up to now, the wave-in, called “Managed Inclusion” has been seen as a way to encourage more people to sign up and get it regularly, or as a benefit for airline frequent flyer elites. As the program has grown, the PreCheck lines have gotten longer; in some places longer than the regular, and there have been…predictably…complaints.
Over a million passengers have paid $85 directly to join PreCheck for a five-year term; 3,6 million more are eligible because they have paid through the Global Entry or Nexus programs.
Well, shoot. I’ve benefited on “Managed Inclusion” during the last few trips at Oakland for work. I’ve been contemplating the actual program or Global Entry because I will be traveling for work so much, now it looks like I may have to bite the bullet.