Is it just me, or has flying become more Big Brother-ish?
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Been that way since 2001.
Please don’t bring that conversation here. This is not the place, and I am REALLY not the one.
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Is it a Real ID driver’s license? Are they a must yet?
Missouri declined for years to implement real ID but have finally complied.
So I’m providing a 50 year old marriage certificate 
which amazes me that I could even locate it.
My sister had to find several divorce decrees, while the kid that lives here struggled with the 2 pieces of mail.
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Not needed until later this year. But it’s time to start getting it for those who don’t already have one.
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Ah that’s right. It was extended like 3 times. 
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At least 3 times. Missouri kept dragging feet about coming up with a Real ID. This graphic (from Wikipedia 
) suggests Missouri was in compliance in 2019. Perhaps. 2021 was really the first year Real ID seemed necessary.
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Funny update:
They wouldn’t accept kiddos birth certificate at DMV bc it was “damaged.” (The corner was a little torn. 
)
So another agent in my agency gave me a hack: Call the airline and change their birthdate so they are 17 for the week. 
Apparently this is a common thing when a traveler gets their passport/ID and there’s a mistake. It’s easier to change the ticket than the document, so they just make a change to the ticket.
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seriously?!?
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The DMV can be pretty picky with their documents. They wouldn’t accept my son’s social security card because it had ink on it. It had ink on it because when issued the dot matrix printer failed and made a 6 look like a 5 so when I first used his social to file for taxes the IRS kicked it back as invalid. So I filled in the 6 so I wouldn’t make that mistake again. Never thought that would be an issue, but alas it was…
Torn corner seems even more petty of course, but…
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FWIW, I hadn’t told DH about this discussion, and he unprompted told me this morning that his BFF was able to get his newly-18 twins on a flight today using their expired passports.
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Hadn’t heard about Clear - just did some quick research and it’s a 3rd party biometrics company that will sign you up for $179/year and authenticate you to various services including airport security checks at select airports but that’s just in lieu of flashing your ID. If you want expedited screening you still need TSA Pre (or better still Global Entry or NEXUS) which is more widely available.
No offense but I don’t trust a 3rd party for-profit middleman with my biometrics. There are reviews out there of shady practices from Clear like signing people up for “free” trials and then charging them anyway. No thanks.
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Thanks for this.
My drivers license isnt Real ID but TSA will also accept a passport. If you have one, you don’t need a Real ID license.
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Why pay $179/year for this instead of $85/5 years for TSA Precheck?
I don’t understand the logic?
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There’s two parts of the line. The ID check and the baggage/security screening. TSA Precheck gets you through the baggage/security screening faster. Clear gets you through the ID check faster. Lots of people have both. Clear also works for some concert/sporting event venues.
I have had Precheck since December and have flown two round trips. All four times I pretty much walked right up, showed my ID (pulling down my mask so they could see my face), and walked right through the scanner. It was super fast, even in MCO (one of the four flights).
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We have actually had our Precheck so long we had to renew this year. That has always been our experience too (except at tiny airports like ORH that don’t have separate lines). We’ve never waited long - a quick ID check, smile and move on. The longest we’ve waited is for the TSA agent explain to folks why they are in the wrong line!
At SeaTac it can easily be a 10 minute line to get to the ID check in the precheck line. Other times you walk right up. Just depends on the day.
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I find it amusing I pay less for TSAPre. I have Nexus, it includes TSAPre and only $50/5 years.
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I only have Precheck right now, but when it comes up for renewal I’m just going to get Global Entry bc it includes Precheck, and my Amex card will reimburse the cost so, it’s essentially free.
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