Biz fliers rejoice as United gets on board with PreCheck system

Ken Janoski couldn't wait for expedited security screening for frequent fliers, known as PreCheck, to arrive at the United Airlines terminal at O'Hare International Airport.

"Anything to reduce the hassle," he says as he arrives at O'Hare, where United added a PreCheck lane to its security checkpoint last week.

For corporate trekkers such as Mr. Janoski, a Chicago-based executive at Computer Sciences Corp., it means not having to take off shoes, belts or suit coats, or pull out computers and liquids from their luggage. That can cut by half the time it takes to get through security, particularly at peak times, such as Monday mornings, when airports are thick with business travelers.

Mr. Janoski got his first glimpse of PreCheck at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, where he saw other travelers breezing through a special security line. "I said, 'I've got to have that.' "

Those who have used it say PreCheck rolls back the time and trouble of going through security to pre-Sept. 11 levels. And there's no cost for those invited to participate.

"It's the first time I've ever gone through TSA smiling," says Robert Cullen, CEO of New Jersey-based Veritext, who used it for the first time at O'Hare last week as he returned to New York after a meeting in Chicago.

It's not carte blanche, however. Even PreCheck participants are randomly sent through traditional security before boarding.

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration says the idea is to devote less time and energy to scrutinizing frequent travelers who present an unlikely terrorism threat.

"It allows us to focus on travelers who pose a higher risk," says Doug Hofsass, a former United security manager who now is a TSA associate administrator.

So far, 1.6 million passengers have been screened since the program launched in October. About 307 million passengers board planes at U.S. airports annually.

Long term, TSA hopes to get 50 to 70 percent of travelers using PreCheck. It plans to expand the program to 35 airports from 16 by year-end.

"It's as valuable to an airport as a jetway or Starbucks," says Henry Harteveldt, a travel analyst at San Francisco-based Atmosphere Research Group who was in Chicago last week for an industry conference.

FREQUENT FLIERS INVITED

The program is heavily dependent on the airlines, which invite passengers to enroll via their frequent-flier programs. Fliers also can enroll in PreCheck through other "trusted traveler" programs recognized by TSA, such as Global Entry, which costs $100 for five years.

Carriers must volunteer to bring PreCheck to their operations at a particular airport.

American Airlines was the first to use PreCheck at O'Hare, in March. With United on board, 83 percent of the airport's passengers are potentially eligible for PreCheck. But accelerated screening is unlikely to come to Midway Airport for at least a year as Southwest Airlines, the primary carrier there, works out technology issues related to its merger with AirTran. "We are interested in participating at some point," a spokeswoman says.

TSA provides few specifics on the number of travelers accepted, what percentage is rejected or criteria. Passengers don't receive notification that they have been accepted, either. They find out the next time they arrive at the airport and are diverted to the PreCheck lane.

American Airlines, one of two airlines involved at the launch of PreCheck in October, says the number of customers who opted in is well into six figures. The number of customers opening and "clicking through" email invitations for PreCheck is four times higher than the number for other emails from the airline.

Michael Moskow, former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, signed up for PreCheck on Wednesday as soon as the service launched at United. "I still fly probably once every other week," he said before he headed to the regular security line, where he had to remove his belt, shoes and jacket. "Hopefully it speeds things up."