# Do I need to be concerned about my flight **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 11, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830 "2015-07-11T02:31:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/21 "2015-07-14T22:21:45Z")
A couple of years ago a guy called Christopher Williams booked a flight internally in the UK in the name by which he was universally known - Kit Williams. They would not let him board his flight because his passport said Christopher. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/22 "2015-07-14T22:36:14Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I once had TSA give me shit because my middle name was “Steven” on my boarding pass, but “Stephen” on my driver’s license (an employee had booked the flight). At first I thought he was kidding around, but he made it clear that he did not have to let me fly that day. > > Fuckers. > [@Shagnasty](#): > > I had a serious problem once with a flight from Denver to Boston because of that problem. It was a work flight that I make frequently but work only knows me by my middle name that I have gone by since birth. They booked my tickets under my middle name which normally does not cause much problem except for casual questioning and maybe a show of id with my full name. > > However, one time in Denver, I encountered the worst power hungry bitch I have yet to meet. She knew I was telling the truth but refused to relent and told me that I wasn’t going to be allowed on the flight at all because of the name discrepancy. However, as luck would have it, she got called away and her coworkers took pity on me. A very kind flamboyant gay man called me over and told me that she tries to terrorize anyone she can and not to worry about it. A few key strokes later my ticket was fixed with a smile and a wink. I had no trouble after that. > > Those occurrences are rather rare however. I fly with my daughters several times a year and their first and middle names often get smashed together on their tickets but not on mine for some odd reason (patriarchy I assume?). I am not sure why they can’t fix that flaw but it has never caused any problem. > [@bob\_2](#): > > A couple of years ago a guy called Christopher Williams booked a flight internally in the UK in the name by which he was universally known - Kit Williams. They would not let him board his flight because his passport said Christopher. Petty bureaucrat is petty. It’s a risk of modern life. In theory, you can reduce the risk by ruthlessly harmonizing every aspect of your identity, but then you still run afoul of poorly designed systems and bad processes. Like software that doesn’t understand a name can be more than FIRSTNAME LASTNAME, or can be made of letters that don’t even exist (in English). Bureaucrats and bureaucratic systems are designed by the lowest bidder to minimum specifications. Then they’re poorly used and poorly maintained. And since the bureaucrat never suffers for the problem, the problem doesn’t need to be fixed. And yet, we still manage to suffer along, mostly getting by. Except for the unluckies whose various innocent non-infractions (wrong accent, or basic facts of identity don’t conform to stupid system assumptions, etc.) run afoul of the bureaucratic fetish for being technically correct. No, OP, you really don’t need to be concerned with a trivial system stupidity about your name. You probably don’t profile as a threat, and the chances of getting a rigid pinheaded dictator-in-training at the counter and gate aren’t really that high. And frankly, if you get one of those, you’ll have problems even if your papers are in perfect order. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/23 "2015-07-15T00:44:21Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > In theory, you can reduce the risk by ruthlessly harmonizing every aspect of your identity, but then you still run afoul of poorly designed systems and bad processes. Like software that doesn’t understand a name can be more than FIRSTNAME LASTNAME, or can be made of letters that don’t even exist (in English). Back when they ruled that the ticket must be in the name that’s on the ID, which in turn chain-reacted with how the name on the replacement passport had to coincide with the name on the birth certificate and secondary ID, I was able to notice the problems that arose with the systems. American Airlines, doing at the time a lot of Latin American business, had no problem with multiword surnames. But most others forced me to become Mr. Deliriousmatronymic or Mr. Delirious[hyphen]Matronymic. To this day most of my flights are in the name of Mr. Deliriousmatronymic. (\* History: Had my passport issued while a Maryland resident c. 1990 as plain _J\_ R\_ Delirious_ and really liked it; lost it in the mid 2000’s when back residing in PR and of course the Birth Certificate and Driver’s License and Voter Registration **here** read _J\_\_ R\_\_ Delirious Matronymic_, and no you can’t ditch the last bit any more, said La Burócrata at the passport processing window. So off to my FF programs to change my profiles…) ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/24 "2015-07-15T13:22:26Z")
Virgin Atlantic does this to me every time I go to the UK, shoving my first and middle names together. I’ve never had a problem getting there or coming home. ---
**Author:** ![sbunny8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@sbunny8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sbunny8)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/25 "2015-07-15T15:09:35Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > …poorly designed systems and bad processes. Like software that doesn’t understand a name can be more than FIRSTNAME LASTNAME, or can be made of letters that don’t even exist (in English). My last name is hyphenated. I wish I had a dollar for ever time I’ve encountered a computer system which stubbornly refuses to accept the hyphen as a valid character in the name field. The worst example was an insurance company whose main computer WOULD accept the hyphen but whose web portal would NOT accept the hyphen, so it refused to let me access my account online because the names didn’t match. When I fly, I make sure to take both my driver’s license and my passport, one which has the hyphen and one which doesn’t, so I’m covered either way. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/26 "2015-07-15T16:03:42Z")
With his name in all caps and no space between his first and middle “name”, does the TSA have any authority considering the OP’s person does not have a contract in bond with them? ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/27 "2015-07-15T16:33:46Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > With his name in all caps and no space between his first and middle “name”, does the TSA have any authority considering the OP’s person does not have a contract in bond with them? Probably not, so long as the OP doesn’t mind having his legal strawman fly in his stead. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/28 "2015-07-15T16:44:15Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > My last name is hyphenated. I wish I had a dollar for ever time I’ve encountered a computer system which stubbornly refuses to accept the hyphen as a valid character in the name field. The worst example was an insurance company whose main computer WOULD accept the hyphen but whose web portal would NOT accept the hyphen, so it refused to let me access my account online because the names didn’t match. Oh, dear. I hadn’t even contemplated this issue when I’d planned to take my intended’s hyphenated surname (which, as I told him, I was only taking because it sounded posher than mine, not because of patriarchal societal expectations). It sounds like it can be a PITA. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/29 "2015-07-15T16:45:35Z")
Spelling errors, as people here have mentioned, can be a big deal. The lack of separation between middle and first names is not an issue. Same goes for appending things like MR to a name. Different counties, different systems, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Dahu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dahu/32/3416_2.png) [@Dahu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dahu)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830/30 "2015-07-15T19:29:58Z")
Sometimes when mistakes are made it’s cheaper to [change your name than change your ticket](http://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/jun/05/student-changes-name-by-deed-poll-to-avoid-220-ryanair-admin-fee) > [@](#): > > Adam Armstrong says changing his name and getting a new passport for £103 was cheaper than changing his ticket. > > A student has changed his name by deed poll because it was cheaper than paying a “ridiculous” Ryanair charge for a booking error. > > Adam Armstrong, 19, was presented with a £220 administration fee after his girlfriend’s stepfather mistakenly reserved a seat to Ibiza for him with the budget airline under the surname of West. > > Armstrong, who is studying for a foundation degree in digital marketing at Leeds City College, changed his name to West for free and drove to Liverpool to rush through a new passport for £103. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-be-concerned-about-my-flight/724830.md?page=1)