The Clear trusted traveler program now available at discount from Delta. Will you join? (Image: Chris McGinnis)
More details emerged today regarding Delta’s partnership (and partial ownership) of CLEAR, the company that offers expedited airport security service at 13 airports.
Most important are the discounts for CLEAR membership now offered to Delta SkyMiles members, based on their status. Standard membership in CLEAR is $179 per year. Delta Diamond Medallion members get complimentary CLEAR enrollment, while Platinum, Gold and Silver Medallion members it for just $79. Even general members get a nice discount: annual membership for just $99.
Delta says that it will email members in coming weeks about the discounts. (More from the Delta News Hub here)
Our biggest question however, is if Delta is going to add CLEAR to all its key airports, most importantly, those in New York City, like La Guardia and Kennedy. We also expected to see CLEAR lanes in Delta’s recently reconfigured (and faster) security lanes at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta Airport’s south terminal entrypoint– but so far, they’ve not made an appearance. Delta has not confirmed any new CLEAR locations, and when we last asked, told TravelSkills: “We don’t have any additional location detail for today but hope to later this summer.”
Until CLEAR is available at your hometown airport, or one where you travel to frequently, we’d suggest holding off on paying for the service, even at a discount. This is especially true if you already enjoy PreCheck.
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Airports that currently have CLEAR lanes (Image: CLEAR)
CLEAR currently operates at San Francisco, San Jose, Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth,Houston Bush, Houston Hobby, San Antonio, Austin, Orlando, Miami, Las Vegas, Baltimore-Washington, and Westchester County Airport in New York. Seattle-Tacoma is next up, but there’s not a firm launch date yet. Additionally, its biometric service can be found at Yankee Stadium in New York, Coors Field in Denver, Marlins Park in Miami and AT&T Park in San Francisco.
Interested? You can sign up with your Delta SkyMiles status here.
Since I live in San Francisco, and use SFO as my primary airport, and it has CLEAR, I have maintained my membership over the years. I don’t need to use it that often (and I hate the “walk of shame” to the front of the line. But the few times it has saved me from missing flights makes it worth the $179 fee. (When it comes time for renewal, I’ll take Delta up on the discount!)
What about you? Have you or do you plan to use CLEAR now that Delta is offering these discounts? Please leave your comments below.
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Melinda Teter says
March 20, 2017 at 7:46 pmI see Atlanta on the Clear list but not on your page here. Is it just because it is new to Atlanta?
Tom Y says
July 1, 2016 at 6:13 amSince my home airport is ATL, I don’t see any point in rejoining at the moment.
Tom McNamara says
June 28, 2016 at 10:38 pm….sounds like the ultimate goal is to have more people enroll in CLEAR than Pre-Check so that the airlines have *even* more control over this preferential screening, both in who gets it and who does the screening (i.e. not federal employees). That would also allow such a system to be more profitable for them (since you are charging more and paying the workers less).
You have to wonder where this bifurcation ends though …separate airports for each carrier like the railroads had at the turn of the century? Or just completely separate procedures for each terminal? (Southwest screens everyone in the same line, maybe?) While consolidation has given the airlines more leverage here…I’m not sure what the end game is. Constantly pressing Congress for more autonomy on this issues just accelerates more consolidation and is not in most of the carriers’ best interest…
And realistically, the attack in Brussels indicates we should probably be going the other direction and using actual law enforcement to control this screening…but again…that’s not how Washington often works.
I give Delta credit though for all this vertical consolidation…I mean…what ever happened to that oil refinery they bought in… Pennsylvania was it? Clearly that was ahead of its time… (no pun intended.)
Chris McGinnis says
June 28, 2016 at 6:01 pmLOL, Jeff. I’ll hold my head high and think of you next time they break me in line. Yeeesh!
jeff says
June 28, 2016 at 5:57 pm“Walk of Shame”!! Not a chance! When you spend 50-60k a year time is precious. Proudly hold that head up and strut to the head of the line? I will be interested to see how it works at ATL and to see if it is integrated into the PreCheck line as I have heard on your blog other airports do.
gerrymander says
June 28, 2016 at 2:21 pmWhy would I want to spend even the discounted amount ANNUALLY to have access to a handful of airports that also have preCheck? The miracle of the private sector…
Eric Westby says
June 28, 2016 at 1:22 pmDelta didn’t purchase Clear outright; they merely invested in it. There’s not a whiff of a chance they’ll make any changes to the service that would impact passengers on other carriers.
Hugo Traeger says
June 28, 2016 at 12:33 pmI currently use Clear along with Pre-Check. But I don’t fly Delta. Will my Clear benefits diminish?