Earlier this month, DHS revealed that it would charge airlines $19 a year per crew member to use CMAP. With a workforce of more than 47,500 pilots and flight attendants, American Airlines faces a $2.64 million annual fee to allow its aircrew to use CMAP… That is, of course, if all crew members consent to their participation in the program.
And the KCM program concludes at the end of 2026. Surprised that airlines — notoriously generous with their money — aren’t protesting the change.
And the thing is, this system already existed without the DHS being involved since 2011. Them suddenly coming in and taking over is ludicrous.
$19 for a full year per employee is actually quite cheap. Wouldn’t surprise me if it’s a lower cost than they had for KCM. Furthermore, it moves liability from the airlines to the government for any security mishaps.
Thing is a lot of them use Global Entry for international travel or have otherwise used travel as a regular passenger where their imaged biometrics were already used to pass through security for travel.
I need to ask around about the rationalization behind the resistance, this seems like fighting a battle that they don’t understand they lost years ago. Like refusing to use an app on an iphone because it sells its data to apple while carrying an iphone that already does that.
Nope!
Since 2011, flight attendants and pilots have been able to bypass regular TSA airport security screening through the ‘Known Crewmember’ (KCM) program, which has never been administered by the Department of Homeland Security, but rather as a joint initiative between the Air Line Pilots Association and industry trade group Airlines For America (A4A).
The new system would give data directly over to the DHS. The old system was privately managed and implemented.
Sure those companies COULD hypothetically sell the data to DHS or the DHS could find another way to legally request it, but I think both cases would be highly publicized, e.g. we’re talking about it under one such article.
I’m not sure what you mean by “nope!”
I’m an airline pilot. I deal with this every day at work.
You deal with the KCM which since 2011 has never been managed directly by the DHS.
Walking through a scanner every day doesn’t mean you understand it or what is done with the data.
Just like sitting in an airplane doesn’t mean I know how to fly it.
Stay in your lane when it comes to claims of expertise sir sky cabbie
Stay in your lane when it comes to claims of expertise sir sky cabbie
No need to be a dick, bro.



