Passengers who have made recent name changes may be in for an exhausting process at the airport. While the Transportation Security Administration’s “Secure Flight” program might not be news to travelers, its stringency may be.
According to the New York Times, the program, although already implemented in some airlines, like American, may be getting tougher on small details.
Names on passports and driver’s licenses must be exactly the same, according to the program, and if they aren’t, travelers may or may not incur delays at airports. Reservations will need to made under the precise name on your ID, including all initials and punctuation, but a flaw in the system makes it difficult to oblige.
The NYT notes that some airline websites won’t allow you to insert hyphens or apostrophes in appropriate places, or will even go so far as to cut names at the 16-character mark.
If you plan to travel under a new last name, or have a change of address that has been updated on only one form of ID, we suggest you rectify it immediately if you want to board your flight smoothly and enjoy your trip.
© Cheapflights Ltd Andrea Mooney
