Clear Airport Security Program Closed

Clear Airport Security Program Closed suddenly. There is no No warning and no information beyond a sparse statement. At 11:00 p.m. PST on June 22, 2009, Clear will cease operations. Clear’s parent company, Verified Identity Pass, Inc. has been unable to negotiate an agreement with its senior creditor to continue operations.

Clear also sent an email to its customers. There is no word on how Verified Identity Pass, a private New York-based company, will handle its estimated 250,000 members.

It was sometimes known clear or Fly Clear which allowed people to bypass regular security at some airports for an annual fee. The program designed to let pre-screened travelers bypass long airport security lines ended.

It’s amazing — rather appalling really — that nothing remains up on the site for those who were members of the program. How much time did you have left on your card? Will you get any refund.

Clear also ran a special affiliate program for selected “Refer-A-Friend” members paying $20 for each referral between November 17 and December 17, 2008. I don’t think I had any referrals that qualified during that period, but others might. If they weren’t paid, some people might be owed money.

Of course, the bigger issue is for all those travelers who as of 11pm Pacific time tonight will find that Clear lanes have closed down. Apparently, airports offering the Clear lanes also had no previous notice.

It’s pretty disappointing. I’d hope that someone is able to step in and perhaps pick up where Clear left off. After a rocky start, I found the machines became more dependable. It was certainly a relief for me to use Clear when I’d be flying out of airports that offered it, such as San Jose.

A side note, especially of interest to my readers who also keep up on my commentary about newspapers. Clear was started by Steve Brill, who abandoned the company in March. Brill’s latest venture, Journalism Online , aims to help newspapers weather the current economic storms they face. I have to say, with Brill’s previous company Clear in disarray, I’m not feeling too optimistic about how his journalism enterprise will go.

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