100 Ways to Slightly Improve Your Travel Experience: #25 Enroll in TSA Pre-Check

Airport security is a pain.  It takes time, it is inconvenient, the rules are often confusing.  Short of flying private charter, it is a fact of flying, and unlikely to go away any time soon.  The best we can do, is make it as easy as we can. 

In the United States airport security is easier - still not always easy - if you have access to TSA Pre-Check.  For Pre-Check the security lines are generally shorter, sometimes drastically shorter, you don't have to take off your shoes unless they contain metal reinforcements, you don't have to take out your laptops and larger electronic devices, or small liquids and gels.  You do need to empty your pockets, ideally placing everything in your bag or briefcase that goes through a scanning machine. At most airports, Pre-Check uses metal detectors, rather than than the full body scanners.  This type of scanning is faster. 

There are several options to get Pre-Check.  One is buying premium tickets from the airline, and if the airline has enough information on file for you, they can assign you to Pre-Check.  

More commonly the flyer enrolls in Pre-Check by filling in a simple application, paying a fee, and I meeting with TSA for a short interview.  TSA runs a background, and verifies the person's identity. 

Enrolling in CLEAR or Global Entry, also automatically include Pre-Check. I will talk about those options in other posts. 

With Pre-Check security usually takes me less than 15 minutes, sometimes less than five. And even if the airport is unusually busy and it takes 20-30 minutes, the wait in the non-pre check line is likely twice that long. 

Many, but certainly not all, Pre-Check flyers fly often. Meaning they are better prepared for passing through security easily on the first try.  Not to say people won't do something silly, recently the guy in line in front of me, pulled his phone out of his bag and slipped it in his back pocket, as he was headed into the metal detector.  He was redirected to run the phone through the luggage scanner, and he was sent to the full body scanner.   

I will post my tips for clearing security separately.  Pre-Check gets you into the express lane, then simple preparation gets you through the line faster.