Air travelers in the U.S. without a REAL ID will be charged a $45 fee beginning in February, the Transportation Security Administration announced Monday.
The updated ID has been required since May, but passengers without it have so far been allowed to clear security with additional screening and a warning. The Department of Homeland Security says 94% of passengers are already compliant and that the new fee is intended to encourage travelers to obtain the ID.
REAL ID is a federally compliant state-issued license or identification card that meets enhanced requirements mandated in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Identity is one of those “danger to the flight” things. Like the 9/11 hijackers didn’t bring any weapons on board, they just used force and exploited the compliance of the crew to take control. So if they flag you as a known terrorist, they stop you getting on the plane.
In theory. In practice I don’t think the TSA has stopped a single attempt of terrorism, but I also don’t think we’ve had any attempts since 9/11. Whether that’s due to the existence of the TSA is impossible to say.
They may have just used force to take the planes, but regulations regarding cockpit security were completely revolutionized after 9/11. That same tactic should not work today. Hell, even having a weapon doesn’t really make a hijacking more likely.
The problem was insecure cockpits, not that the authorities didn’t know the identities of the people onboard. There is no actual proven security reason for the TSA collecting this information.