SECURE FLIGHT

Secure Flight – What is it?

Secure Flight is the latest requirement from the US DHS (Dept of Homeland Security). It is a behind the scenes program that improves watch list matching. By providing passenger data in advance, it is intended to improve the travel experience for all airline passengers, including those who have been misidentified in the past.

When an itinerary involves the US, the passenger(s) will be required to provide the following minimum Secure Flight Passenger Data (SFPD) to their airline when making a reservation:

  • Name as it appears on government-issued I.D. when travelling
  • Date of Birth
  • Gender
  • Redress Number if available, which is part of DHS Travel Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP)

The airline will transmit this information to TSA, 72 hours prior to departure, to perform watch list matching. This serves to prevent individuals on the No Fly List from boarding an aircraft and to identify individuals on the Selectee List for enhanced screening. After matching passenger information against government watch lists, TSA transmit the matching results back to airlines. It should be noted that SFPD does not replace the requirement for APIS data it is an additional requirement.

Bookings that are made within 72 hours of departure must include minimum SFPD.

There may be a requirement from the US TSA to cancel bookings without the data.

What are the timescales?

Secure Flight has been used for US Domestic Flights since October 2009. It is being extended to include all international flights by Nov 2010. Each airline has been given implementation dates by the TSA, British Airways implementation date is 1st July 2010. By November 2010 airlines are expected to have 100% of passengers complying with Secure Flight.

What is British Airways doing?

British Airways is making a number of changes to our systems to support Secure Flight and to link in with other systems. The key timescales are:

  • Changing the PNR/DCS keywords from the original BA keywords to the industry standard.
  • Adding in the capability to capture SFPD in ba.com
  • Creating/amending robots to check completeness of SFPD and alert booking source
  • Enabling other reservation systems to input/accept SFPD data in new standard format
  • Enabling transmission of SFPD data to US

What does this mean to the Trade – Have to establish processes to capture SFPD a minimum of 72 hours prior to travel or at time of ticketing whichever is later.

What does this mean to customers – must provide minimum SFPD a minimum of 72 hours prior to travel or at time of ticketing whichever is later or risk being refused for the flight.