 |
Globe Editorial
Whether it’s at T.F. Green or Chicago O’Hare or General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport, the Transportation Security Administration will soon be matching the fine print on passengers’ boarding passes to their IDs - down to the hyphens, initials, and apostrophes. That means that Barack Obama won’t be able to board a plane with a college ID calling him Barry Obama. But what happens to someone named, say, Bernard O’Bama? Some airline ticketing systems wouldn’t even pick up the apostrophe in his name.
In fact, many airline and travel websites do not yet allow passengers to register their names exactly as they appear on their driver’s licenses and passports. They require travelers to shed their Irish apostrophes, fuse what lies on either side of their hyphens, and clip their polymerous Spanish surnames. Some don’t have space for full middle names, others not even for middle initials. Yet, once the new security rules are strictly enforced, if a driver’s license says Mary Katherine O’Brien, a boarding pass that says Mary OBrien won’t fly.
Since August, some air travel websites have begun requesting the date of birth and gender of passengers to comply with TSA rules. Let’s hope they also accept reservations for all kinds of names soon. Regardless, the new rules mean all air travelers need to make sure their photo IDs, airline tickets, frequent flyer accounts - and quite often the credit cards they use to book their flights - all show the exact same name. Yes, it’s a small price to pay for a safe flight. But it’s one that the whole air travel industry should make easier.
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
