New Passenger Data Requirements
In October 2008, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the final rule for the Secure Flight program, which is designed to enhance the security of domestic and internation commercial air travel through use of improved watch list matching. Upon full implementation of the Secure Flight program, each passenger traveling to or from a US destination will be required to provide specific information before an airline can issue a boarding pass. Through the Secure Flight program, the TSA will assume from airlines, responsibility for conducting prescreening of passenger information against federal government watch lists. Initially, airlines with flights operating within the United States will be required to provide the TSA with the following passenger data; in the second phase, international flights will be added:
Required Information:
- Passenger's full name as it appears on the ID used to pass through airport security
- Date of birth
- Gender
- DHS Redress Number (if available) or Known Traveler Number (if available, once the Known Program is implemented)
What This Means to You Whenever a flight is booked for travel after February 1st, the travel agencies will be requesting the above information. They will not be able to confirm the flight until they have this information.
To learn more about the Secure Flight Program and/or Homeland Security, visit the DHS site at: