Fliers Will Need Boarding Passes to Pass Security

The Transportation Security Administration, the new federal agency formed after the Sept. 11 attacks, plans to require all airline passengers to have boarding passes before they pass through security, a spokeswoman said Friday.

Since September, the agency has been using the new procedures at parts of six airports around the country, including Jet Blue flights from Long Beach Airport and American Airlines flights from Los Angeles International, Heather Rosenker said.

“It is working well,” she said. “That’s why it continues to be expanding.”

Boarding passes contain special coded information that flags some passengers for more thorough security checks. In the past, these checks have taken place at the gate as passengers prepare to board planes.

But Rosenker said requiring passengers to have their boarding passes as they pass through security will improve safety, because law enforcement officials and sensitive technology are at the checkpoints and not at the gates.

In addition, she said, the new procedures would cut down on waiting times because planes will no longer have to wait while passengers are pulled aside for additional screening. To prevent congestion at ticket counters, electronic kiosks that print boarding passes and additional staff may be added.

Random checks at the gates will continue, she said.