Reply from Clear

I received the following reply to an email which I sent to Steven Brill, CEO of Clear. I hope that he does not mind me sharing it with you

"I ask myself that same question all the time -- and I ask Kip Hawley (who runs TSA) that question, too.

The answer for now is that the background screening will be used to offer real benefits -- such as not having to remove shoes -- once TSA approves the use of the enhanced equipment that we are trying to get them to approve, such as our shoe scanner. They say they are close to approving it and that when they do it will be the combination of the background screening and the enhanced equipment that gives them the comfort to allow a reduction of the security process at the lane.

For now that's a frustrating answer. But mid-term and long-term I think/hope it makes sense."

Clear becoming a little muddy?

In an earlier post I discussed the advantages of using the Clear card for expedited TSA security screening at a number of airports. Unfortunately they have recently downgraded their service, as they no longer use their shoe scanners, which allowed you to keep shoes on through the detector portal.

This means now that the Clear card has just become a paid way to go to the head of the line at security. As the screening that you now undergo is exactly the same as any other passenger, I wonder why they cannot reduce their $99 fee, by removing the TSA pre-screening. I heard that the latter costs about $28, but seems unnecessary now.

Of course, the Clear card is still useful for having a predictable time at security, but it would be nice if they could make it a little cheaper. Or allow the pre-screening to mean something, e.g. leave your shoes on, or leave the laptop in the bag.

I have seen the future and the future is....

Delta .... mobile check-in. Last week Delta started their new mobile check-in service, i.e. the ability to use your phone or PDA to check in. Of course anyone with mobile browser could check in on their PDA/smartphone, but you still need a boarding pass to get through security. Delta has made it easy by sending a bar-coded document to your device, which can then be scanned at a self-service check-in terminal for a boarding pass "re-print". According to the Delta email, they are working with TSA to allow the bar-code to be used instead of a paper boarding pass.

This mobile check-in is available in Europe, but I believe that delta is the first US carrier to implement here in the US. Another way to remove another hassle from our travel, thanks Delta!