Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/12/
flying_into_data_hell/

US demands air passengers ask its permission to fly
By Wendy M. Grossman
Published Friday 12th October 2007 13:18 GMT

"Under new rules proposed by the Transport Security Administration (PDF) (TSA)
all airline passengers would need advance permission before
flying into, through, or over the United States regardless of
citizenship or the airline's national origin.

Currently, the Advanced Passenger Information System, operated by the
Customs and Border Patrol, requires airlines to forward a list of
passenger information no later than 15 minutes before flights from
the US take off (international flights bound for the US have until 15
minutes after take-off). Planes are diverted if a passenger on board
is on the no-fly list.

The new rules mean this information must be submitted 72 hours before
departure. Only those given clearance will get a boarding pass. The
TSA estimates that 90 to 93 per cent of all travel reservations are
final by then.

The proposed rules require the following information for each
passenger: full name, sex, date of birth, and redress number
(assigned to passengers who use the Travel Redress Inquiry Program
because they have been mistakenly placed on the no-fly list), and
known traveller number (once there is a programme in place for
registering known travellers whose backgrounds have been checked).
Non-travellers entering secure areas, such as parents escorting
children, will also need clearance."