TSA PreCheck Now Unlocks Access to Visit Airports Without a Plane Ticket

For most Americans, meeting someone at the airport gate feels like a distant memory of a world before the Sept.11 attacks.

But that ritual could be making a comeback, if you have T.S.A.PreCheck.The Transportation Security Administration is making it easier for members of PreCheck and other trusted traveler programs like Global Entry to go beyond security at more than a dozen airports, even when they aren’t flying.Under the new program, called Gateside, PreCheck members can apply one to three days in advance to pass through security at 13 U.S.

airports, whether it’s to meet a friend, see off a family member or even to meet someone for dinner during a layover.There is no extra charge for Gateside, though PreCheck costs about $80 for five years.A T.S.A.

spokesperson said that the program began last week at airports including Dallas Fort Worth International, Los Angeles International and Harry Reid International, in Las Vegas.The ability to visit an airport without a ticket didn’t entirely go away in the years after 9/11.More than a dozen airports in the United States, including Kansas City International, Philadelphia International, Orlando International and San Francisco International, have their own free programs — not run by the T.S.A.

— that already let nonflying visitors apply to go beyond security checkpoints.These programs also don’t limit applicants to Department of Homeland Security-designated trusted travelers.

Instead, applications generally require only a state-issued Real ID or a passport.Visitors using Gateside should submit applications at least a day before their planned visit and no more than three days in advance, according to the T.S.A.website.

The passes are valid for one calendar day, and allow re-entry.At the airport, approved visitors can use the PreCheck lanes to enter the secure area.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verif...