TSA Experiment with DFW Hotel Gives Guests Access to Shops

MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5289014 DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 2006--Grand Hyatt DFW, adjoined to the state-of-the-art International Terminal D at DFW International Airport, today announced that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has recently given the hotel authorization to implement a unique pilot program - Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport Access Authorization to Commercial Establishments Beyond the Screening Checkpoint Pilot Program (AAACE Program). TSA's AAACE Program gives qualifying hotel guests staying at the Grand Hyatt DFW an opportunity to proceed through security screening at Terminal D in order to gain access to the facility's specialty shops, restaurants and other commercial establishments. The AAACE Program is voluntary and is limited to only registered overnight guests at the Grand Hyatt DFW. It is being conducted by TSA in cooperation with the hotel and the DFW Airport Board, the hotel's operator.

"This is an exciting time for Grand Hyatt DFW. To be in a position to exclusively present our registered hotel guests an option to access the secured side of Terminal D without being a ticketed passenger is an unprecedented offering," said Michael Stephens, general manager for Grand Hyatt DFW. "We have received full support from DFW International Airport on this program and we are honored that TSA has given us authorization to provide this offering to our customers. We look forward to seeing the results which will not only benefit our hotel guests, but the concessionaires and DFW International Airport."

Qualified registered hotel guests who participate in TSA's AAACE Program will have access to the over two-million-square-foot Terminal D facility, which opened in 2005 and was designed with soaring 80-foot ceilings, paintings and unique architecture to visually appeal to its travelers, as well as provide an abundance of amenities that ensure the safest and most-pleasant travel experience of any facility in the world. Terminal D showcases everything from specialty retail shops such as Fossil, Brooks Brothers and the PGA Tour Shop, to a variety of restaurants, bars and other commercial establishments, including Reata Grill, T.G.I. Friday's, Blue Mesa Taco & Tequila Bar, Cantina Laredo, Fuddruckers Hamburgers and Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, among others.

How Does the AAACE Program Work?

Eligibility

Any adult registered overnight guest staying at the Grand Hyatt DFW is eligible to participate in the AAACE Program. Minors, under the age of 18, can also seek participation in the program but they must be registered as an overnight guest and accompanied by a registered adult.

Process

Each registered hotel guest, including minors, who wants to gain access beyond the screening checkpoint, must first notify the hotel's Front Desk staff in person. Once notification is made, the following process is followed:

-- The hotel will contact a Department of Public Safety Officer (DPS Officer) to come to the front desk to meet with the requesting guest(s) and confirm the registered guest(s) eligibility to participate in the AAACE Program.

-- The DPS Officer will examine proper identification presented by each registered guest(s), which includes an unexpired valid government-issue photo (e.g. driver's license, passport, I.D. Card issued by a state Department of Motor Vehicles), as well as each registered guest(s) date of birth.

-- The DPS Officer will compare all information against TSA's No Fly List - the same list which all persons' names are compared when going to take a commercial flight - in order to determine whether the registered guest(s) is someone the U.S. would prohibit from flying commercially as a passenger.