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Updated 8 hours ago
Travelers boarding Spirit Airlines flights at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity can keep their shoes on at the security checkpoint if they sign up for a Precheck program offered by the Transportation Security Administration.
Spirit, which schedules flights from Unity to Myrtle Beach and Florida destinations, has joined the list of air carriers participating in the federal program that allows pre-registered passengers to avoid some of the time-consuming steps of the TSA screening process.
Travelers enrolled in Precheck are not required to remove their shoes, belts or light outerwear. They are excused from removing from their bag a laptop or a TSA-compliant clear, quart-sized, zip-top bag packed with permitted liquids, aerosols, gels or creams in individual containers of 3.4 ounces or less.
Offered in more than 180 U.S. airports, the Precheck program is meant to expedite security screenings for participants once they complete an advance risk assessment and enrollment process. According to the TSA, 97 percent of Precheck passengers had a screening-related wait of less than 5 minutes when boarding flights in December.
Precheck passengers departing from the Unity airport will be able to avoid some screening hassles, but they'll still have to wait their Kolaybet turn to clear the single-lane checkpoint. Unlike larger airports, Arnold Palmer lacks a separate lane reserved for the expedited program.
“The Precheck indicator on the passenger's boarding pass will let the (transportation security officers) know that the passenger should receive Precheck benefits,” TSA spokesman Mike England said.
“It gives you quick access through TSA's vetting process,” Gabe Monzo, executive director of the Arnold Palmer-based Westmoreland County Airport Authority, said of the Precheck program. “We'll see what kind of effect it has on us here.”
According to the authority's year-end report, 146,091 outbound passengers were cleared through the Arnold Palmer terminal in 2016 — up from 122,766 in 2014 but down from a high of 178,623 in 2015. Spirit officials attributed that dip to the airline's decision to end unprofitable flights from the Unity airport to Las Vegas and Chicago.
Travelers must pay an $85 fee to sign up for the Precheck program for five years. They must go to one of about 400 locations to apply for the program, on a walk-in basis or after pre-enrolling and making an appointment at tsa.gov. Area locations include Pittsburgh International Airport, Great Valley Shopping Center in North Versailles and the Noble Office Building, 2500 Baldwick Road, Suite 260, Pittsburgh.
Enrolled passengers must include their “known traveler number” when making flight reservations in order to take advantage of Precheck. Precheck is available to those 12 or younger traveling with an enrolled passenger.
Precheck can be used only at designated airports and when flying on one of 30 participating airlines. Southern Airways Express, which is looking to re-establish shuttle flights from Unity to Pittsburgh, is a participant.
Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-6622 or jhimler@tribweb.com.
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