Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday said that all airline passengers traveling within the United States and its territories are being vetted against terrorist wachlists through the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Secure Flight program.
“Secure Flight fulfills a key recommendation of the of the 9/11 Commission Report, enabling TSA to screen passengers directly against government watchlists using passenger name, date of birth, and gender before a boarding pass is issued,” Napolitano said in a statement. “This program is one of our many layers of security–coordinated with our partners in the airline industry and governments around the world–that we leverage to protect the traveling public against threats of terrorism.”
Prior to the creation of Secure Flight airlines did passenger watchlist checking.
The Department of Homeland Security said that 99 percent of passengers will be cleared by Secure Flight to print boarding passes at home by providing their birth date, gender and name as it appears on their government identification they plan to use when booking airline tickets. Passengers that receive a watchlist hit will go to secondary screening and be subject to a law enforcement interview or not be allowed to board the flight, depending on the specific case.
TSA expects all international carriers with direct flights to the United States to begin using Secure Flight by the end of this year.