TSA Pre-Check - "Mistake" I Made

We had to re-claim our luggage and go back through Security. I don't understand that we just got off a flight, they know we've already gone through Security...?

You go through customs and border control the first port on entry into the United States which in your case was Detroit. This is one way the US government track who is flying into the country. Not all airports in the USA have international flights which require the US Customs and Border Control

I'm guessing (not being familiar with that airport), that once you had picked up your bags and gone through customs, you then had to hand them in again at check-in.
Check-in is outside security, in the "dirty" side of the airport, where you mingle with people just off the street who are also checking in. Somebody could have handed you something, so you need to be security checked again before you are allowed back in the "clean" airside.

If you only had hand luggage, you could have stayed in the "clean" airside and gone direct to your gate.

Airports in Europe operate a different system. Virtually all airports have customs, so they do not require you to clear customs at your first airport, they just load your luggage onto the second flight. Luggage labels issued at airports within the EU are different, so at the final destination they can see which bags are liable for customs, and which are not, even though they get mixed up in the hold and come out on the same carousel.

I had this coming back from South America. My flights were LAN to Miami and then American (interline) to SFO. LAN issued both boarding passes but the American one did not have TSA Pre on it, even though both LAN and American both had my trusted traveler ID. I tried to resolve this in SA, but could not.

On arriving in US I had to exit security to switch terminals. I passed American and noticed the auto check in machines. I inserted my passport and the machine spit out a new boarding pass with TSA Pre on it. I was really happy because regular security was a zoo. I walked past it all and into the Pre line.

Yes, your checked baggage needs to go through US customs with you. You need to claim checked luggage at the port of entry than recheck it to your final destination. Reclaiming is nothing to do with security.

All of the US airports I've been through have a re-check area immediately after customs, within the secure area. This must be different in Detroit?

In Detroit and almost every other airport I know, if you are arriving and need to change terminals then you will need to go thru security. watch the news as TSA pre check may start to be implemented in some other airports outside of the USA.

And in Frankfurt, flying back to the USA you may be asked for another random check before boarding, plus questioning, etc.

There will be and should be security checks more often. We've checked in at a small eastern Europe airport and never had our hand luggage looked at again after 3 flights.

FYI, Detroit/Wayne County airport code is DTW (my "home" airport, international), DET is Coleman Young airport.

We had to re-claim our luggage and go back through Security. I don't understand that - we just got off a flight, they know we've already gone through Security...

Retrieving checked luggage means that one could theoretically retrieve a forbidden item from a checked bag and move it to a carry-on.

Stan— yes Detroit works the same way 1) deplane, 2) go through passport 3) retrieve luggage 4) recheck it immediately if not leaving the airport 5) go through another TSA check immediately after the luggage but before being let lose inside the airport on the secure side. This is all in one space.

I don’t remember there being a TSA pre-check line as everyone had their boarding passes printed overseas and there’s no place to print a boarding pass in this area of the terminal. You are only a few hundred feet inside the US where you go through the security, so how can you print them in Detroit? You’d have to leave the secure area and tramp through the airport with all your carry on junk in order to find a kiosk, print out a boarding pass, all this to get into a not always guaranteed to be shorter line. But by golly--if you're entitled to use TSA pre-check.... In my opinion, that would be a waste of time and energy. The line moved fast because shoes stayed on and everyone was going through their second or third security check so all guns, machetes, and grenades had already been confiscated elsewhere.

We too had pre-check on the boarding passes that were reprinted in the secure side in Detroit, but not on the same pass when printed out in Paris. In short, I don't think you made a mistake.

That is standard. In every entry airport, once you go through customs you can not stay behind security even if you have carry on only. If you had checked bags you have to pick the up prior to customs. The operating theory is that you have had exporsure to checked luggage, yours or others, that contained items that are acceptable for checked luggage - knifes, fire arms, etc. - but not for carry on luggage. Therefore everyone goes through security again if on a continuing flight.

I've actually checked a bag with a very nice German-made 8 inch chef's knife in it (Christmas present). And no, that's not the kind of thing that you want to allow a passenger to transfer into their in-cabin bag when the checked bag must be retrieved for customs purposes.

Thanks for your comments. Good explanations on why we had to claim and re-check baggage. I was just disappointed that we unable to take advantage of TSA Pre-Check upon returning to the US. We had a great vacation and are busy planning the next one!

Zoe, you are correct! I edited the question to change DET to DTW.

Chris and everybody else who answered my transportation questions - Thank You! I was really worried about the passes and train connections but everything worked out perfectly. Really appreciate your help.

Surprisingly, the boarding pass for my recent London-JFK flight had "TSA Precheck" printed on it. Not sure why since it's not valid in London.

Hi Donna:

I frequently fly through DTW to CLE on the way back from Europe. Next time, after you re-check your luggage after Customs, exit that area on the left. There is a tiny sign that reads, "PreCheck this way" or something to that effect. You will then briefly exit the airport, take the escalators a few levels up, find a kiosk to reprint your boarding pass so that TSA PreCheck is on it, then get into the TSA PreCheck line at DTW. It's always worth it and does not take much time. As an aside, unless you're at the few international airports that has US security onsite (e.g., Dublin, Toronto), you always have to go through security after arriving to the US from an international location.

In 2011 I flew from Paris to Cincinnati. Got off the plane and (I think) almost immediately into immigration. No baggage collection yet, or customs. Right after the passport check, there was a security check. We had to remove our 311 bag, take off our shoes, sweaters, etc, so that we could go into the air side of the airport. Then we went through the terminal, left the secure side, and out. I don't know why this was, but it was.

Frank II,
You stated you had a boarding pass with "TSA PRECHECK" printed on it for a flight from the U.K. to the U.S.A. If one is a member of the U.S.A. Global Entry program one is automatically "TSA PRECHECK" on flights originating in the U.S. but not for flights originating outside the U.S. However, the U.K. has a program in which, if one is a participate in the U.S.A. Global Entry program, one can (for a fee) be made a member of a similar group the U.K. has that allows for a special screening line. If you are a Global Entry member perhaps they just extended to you as a courtesy. Or perhaps it was an inducement to join their program. We get email from them every six months or so offering (for a fee) membership in their program. But with so many things being done by computers, who knows? Just random thoughts about the situation.

Donna, glad your trip was so good! I posted the airport codes in case someone mistake them and end up at the wrong airport, which has happened to one friend.

Maybe I'll run into you at DTW sometime!

TC, the UK program is called "Registered Traveler" and I just renewed it for another year. It has nothing to do with security just expedites entry into the country.

It could just be a computer glitch that TSA Precheck was printed on the boarding pass. It was on American Airlines so perhaps their boarding passes just print it if available.

Frank II,
Thanks for the clarification. We just don't fly into the U.K. often enough to make it worthwhile, but it's nice to know what it actually does.

I can't recommend the Global Order Entry System highly enough. It includes (most of the time) TSA precheck. Returning from Europe last Saturday, we were able to pass the hundreds of people in customs lines and use a kiosk for our passport and fingerprints. Certainly worth the cost for people who travel frequently. It is valid for 5 years.

TSA is only valid in the US. I didn't think of it earlier but our
boarding passes didn't have "TSA-pre check" on them since we printed
them in Amsterdam.

I'm confused. Why would it matter in which country the printer you use to print the boarding pass is located? Your "known passenger ID number" is printed on your boarding pass if you entered the known passenger ID number when you booked your tickets online no matter in which country you print the boarding pass. If you have Global Entry as you say you do, "TSA pre-check" isn't on the boarding pass; the known passenger ID number assuming you entered that information.

Consider adding boarding pass functionality to your smartphone. It's lightyears more convenient than searching for printers in the US and abroad.