Something gone wrong with your PreCheck? Here's why

Travelers want to move through security checkpoints fast — because they want time to grab lunch, or because they risk missing their flight, or simply dislike lines, or all of the above. For that reason, the Transportation Security Administration's PreCheck program, which has been providing expedited screening for approved passengers since 2011, has appealed to many frequent fliers. The administration recently received its 5 millionth applicant, and 30 airlines now participate at 180 airports.

On April 16 — a relatively busy Easter Sunday — the maximum wait time for the standard security checkpoint at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport was 15 minutes. At the PreCheck line, it was 3 minutes. Nationally, the maximum time passengers waited in the standard lane was 35 minutes; 14 at PreCheck.

So it is great, unless something goes wrong.

Readers occasionally complain that although their application for TSA PreCheck was approved — and they paid the $85 application fee — they do not get a pass to the fast lane.

The problem could be as simple as a name match. Once a person is approved for PreCheck, their boarding passes should note "PreCheck," the key to the expedited screening lane. For those magical words to appear, the government approval needs to link to the airline's online systems. That requires an electronic syncing — and an exact name match. If John Joe Doe was approved for the PreCheck program but he books tickets as John Doe, the link is broken.

Beware, too, that if an airline is not participating in the program, its customers will not get the perk. This had many PreCheck enrollees stymied in years past, when even popular airlines such as Southwest did not participate. Now that the process is easier for airlines (something to do with the workings of computer systems), more airlines take part, including Sun Country and Frontier.

Should an enrollee have issues, he or she should tweet a note to @AskTSA. A TSA staff member will reach out and ask for a direct message to carry on correspondence in private. TSA can generally get to the bottom of a problem, provided the booking is active or recent.