name on ticket and id

I suspect the TSA will just waive you thorugh.

However, the worst that can happen is they decide to "search everything" due to the "suspicious name" I have gotten on a plane with NO ID so it can be done.

Mismatched names will probably not cause you to be searched. It might cause you to have to cough up secondary identification. While you don't exactly meet the TSA rules, the agents are not idiots and have some latitude in rule application.

If the airline will change you name in their system at no charge, I'd have them do it since that's the list that's provided to TSA. That way the secuirty list and your passport would match.

The really odd question is how did the clerk come up with "Connie"?

In response to the lady from Georgia who wrote that she got through once with no ID, that must have been some time ago - Currently reservations clerks and travel agents want your middle initial, if it appears on your ID, which is where I got the impression the requirements have become more strict or more refined. (The United reservations clerk did ask fo rmy initial, which she put down after my nickname....)
I thought it would be outrageous for me to pay another $150 to change name on this ticket after I had just shelled out $150 to have the date changed. (This is a domestic ticket from SFO to MCO (Orlando, FL). Of course the original ticket for which the date change was made carried the correct formal name, not my nick name, so I don't undertand how they do business. Just as how I do not understand how putting their records (United's records) the note that "Connie" and "Constance" are the same person would affect the judgement of the TSA guard at the security line entrance who will not see it......
Connie

Connie,
It was actually fairly recently. I had my wallet stolen.

The TSA would LIKE all this information, but the little known secret... most of the locations don't even have the scanners to check all that info they put it. My boarding passes have never been scanned to see if I entered all that fun data (I run about 50% on bothering to do it :) ) And I fly weekly. At the checkpoint I go through in Atlanta I have rarely seen a TSA agent go to the scanner to do the confirmation :)

If you don't have an ID they will SEARCH everything you have and ask you lots of idiotic questions (Do they think a terrorist would draw attention to themselves this way??? REALLY??? LOL!) But you will get on the plane. Arrive early if you do this!

TSA’s “Secure Flight” rules are relatively new and have been implemented slowly. I wouldn’t get too worked up about it, as the worst case scenario is probably a little delay and additional ID on your part at the airports. My guess is that it will cause you no issue whatsoever. I certainly wouldn’t pay a change fee to change the name at this point. If it’s truly United’s error, you can try to escalate the issue up through a manager at their call center, but good luck. I don’t believe the slight first name discrepancy will impact your travel. You could check out TSA’s website for further info.

And don't have your ID in a plastic sleeve. On my last flight the TSA screener had me take my driver's license out of the handy plastic sleeve that holds the license to my wallet. He scanned it.

United Airlines notified me recently that the TSA now is demanding that date of birth needs to be part of the info submitted when you buy an airline ticket. I already had my ticket, so I entered the info into United's website. Apparently that satisfied the requirement.

Thank you for all your helpful (and encouraging) responses!
For whatever reason, the United reservations person put down "Connie" instead of "Constance", the name on the ticket where I had her change the date. "Connie" is the name on my Mileage Plan and also the name used on my United Visa credit card.

There was a $150 charge to change the date, and another $25.00 charge as it was done by human being instead of online. To change the name on the new ticket to match my driver's license or passport would cost another $150, as it would be processed as a cancellation and rebooking. (Not a small fee if one has already paid $175 just to change the date already).
Yes I appealed to at least five different people at United, one after another, each call requiring being put on hold while a superior was consulted. One of them, after conferring with his supervisor, told me to call Reservations again (why didn't he just transfer me?) and to instruct them that it would be okay to have the name on the ticket changed... and yes, I went to the TSA site before writing in to this site, etc etc.

Generally speaking once a ticket has been issued, it cannot be changed without being cancelled and reissued, which will cost (on United) $150 each time. Plus $25 for having a human being do it.

Well, if the TSA agents at the security gate can scan data from United, I guess that they can see that Connie and Constance are the same passenger since United informed me that they had put this note into the record.
No, I am not a United Elite flyer and anticipate getting to the airport very early before the 6:00am flight. And yes, I will be changing the name used on my mileage plan to match the legal name used on my IDs but not until this trip is over... .
Many thanks!!!
Connie

First, changing your name on your FF account will save a lot of hassle in the future.

There are two parts to secure flight: the one most people are aware of where your name on your boarding pass has to match the name on your ID.

But that's actually the second part. The first part is the information given to TSA prior to you getting a boarding pass. To avoid confusion, TSA now wants your full name and DOB to avoid mixups.(This is done by the airlines.) Once you clear that hurdle, you're able to get a boarding pass. If there is a problem, you don't get the boarding pass.

Bring any kind of ID with your name as "Connie," such as your United credit card, and this will help expedite if the TSO isn't happy with the Connie/Constance mixup.

Connie,

I have had better luck with customer service when I have written to them than when I have spoken on the phone to someone. You still may want to write a letter (you can send it via email) which describes the situation ... how the ticket was originally issued in the correct name, but the agent wrote up the ticket using the name on your United FF account. I would detail each conversation you had with an agent. Even if this is now fixed, I would still write a letter detailing the situation. I would describe your disappointment in how United handled this.

You might not get anything, but it can't hurt.

Two weeks ago at Hartsfield Int AP TSA stopped my wife because her boarding pass supposedly listed her as a MR instead of a MRS. The name field on the boarding pass is limited to 17 characters and, yes you guessed it, the S would have been #18. Nice guy, seemed intelligent, but he had to get supervisor approval to let her pass security, even though her name matched her passport. Apparently that rule had been rescinded so it was only a minute delay, and they were all courteous, professional and even apologetic.

BL, I think it depends on the Airport (security can be a bit different between APs), the TSA agent, and what rules are in affect at the time. BTW...TSA agents have tough job, be nice to them:)

This has been a problem for some people, as reported in the last year or so on this site. Unfortunately, the stakes are kinda high, because the worst case scenario is bad: you get to the airport and aren't allowed to board.

To Steve, yes I thought I had changed the name on my FF plan with United a few months ago on their site, a change from "Connie" to Constance". I should have checked as I did notice that the welcome message is still being directed to "Connie" and not "Constance".

When I mentioned to one of the United staffers that I had put in for a name change on their site (from nickname to formal name) two months ago, I was told that a name change must be put in writing, not by email or on the site but by hardcopy, accompanied by a photocopy of the ID - passport or Driver's license..

I haven't heard the announcement that the rules are in place and firm yet, but the day is coming soon when your ticket and ID name (passport for international, driver's license for domestic) must match.

I'm finding the same thing as you and gradually (whenever I notice something) changing everything from Brad to Bradley (not sure when I'll change my Rick Steves name).