United Airlines App Now Shows TSA Wait Times at All 7 U.S. Hubs
Aloha ʻohana! If you fly United Airlines out of your home island, there is a new feature in the app you are going to want to know about. United just launched a real-time TSA checkpoint wait time tracker directly inside its mobile app, and the airline is calling it a first-of-its-kind offering from a major U.S. carrier. For those of us here in Hawaii who connect through the mainland on the way to pretty much everywhere, this one is actually worth paying attention to.
Here is the full breakdown, straight from United's official announcement, plus why it matters specifically for kamaʻāina travelers.
What United Just Added to Its App
United Airlines rolled out estimated TSA security wait times as part of a new pilot program. The feature lives in the Travel section of the United mobile app and provides regular wait time updates throughout the day. According to United's Chief Information Officer Jason Birnbaum, the goal is straightforward: the airline wants to give travelers the information they need to plan their trip with confidence.
The app now shows estimated wait times for specific lanes at each airport, including both the standard security lane and TSA PreCheck. That side-by-side comparison is what makes this genuinely useful, especially for those of us who are on the fence about whether PreCheck is worth it.
United is transparent that these are estimates based on data the airline itself collects, and actual wait times may vary. That said, even a rough number is far better than guessing, especially on a travel day when you are already counting every minute.
Which Airports Are Included Right Now
The pilot is currently live at all seven of United's U.S. hub airports:
- Chicago O'Hare (ORD) - one of the most-used connections for Hawaii travelers heading to the Midwest and East
- Denver International (DEN) - an underrated hub for Mountain West and beyond
- Houston George Bush Intercontinental (IAH) - gateway to Texas, the South, and international routes. Note: Houston's data is sourced from the Houston Airport System directly
- Los Angeles International (LAX) - the hub most Hawaii travelers pass through most often
- Newark Liberty International (EWR) - United's main East Coast hub and the Northeast gateway
- San Francisco International (SFO) - a massive one for us, especially for transpacific connections
- Washington Dulles (IAD) - key for D.C. trips and transatlantic connections
Every single one of these is a hub that Hawaii travelers route through regularly. LAX and SFO alone cover a huge chunk of outbound island travel on United. If you fly through any of these, this feature is live for you right now.
Find the TSA wait time tracker in the Travel section of the United app. It updates regularly throughout the day and shows estimated wait times for both the standard TSA lane and TSA PreCheck at your departure airport. United notes that wait times are estimates and may differ from actual conditions, so always build in buffer time regardless.
Why This Hits Different for Hawaii Travelers
When we fly from Hawaii, the journey is already long before we even board the first flight. A five-hour hop to the mainland is just the start. Add a connection, and you are easily looking at 10 to 14 hours door to door. Anything that helps us move through an airport smarter is a real quality-of-life improvement.
The biggest thing this feature does is make the value of TSA PreCheck visible in real numbers. When the app shows you that the standard line is 38 minutes and PreCheck is 5 minutes, that stops being abstract. Several travel rewards credit cards cover the cost of Global Entry or TSA PreCheck as a statement credit, which means you can get five years of expedited screening for essentially nothing out of pocket. Seeing that time difference in the app makes it very easy to justify finally signing up.
What Else the United App Can Do Now
United has been quietly building out a seriously capable travel day toolkit. Beyond the new TSA feature, here is what the app already includes according to the official announcement:
- Virtual Gate and bag tracker - real-time boarding group status with a live progress bar, plus package-delivery-style tracking for your checked bag at every point in the journey
- Personalized connections assistant - turn-by-turn directions to your connecting gate with estimated walk times, real-time flight status, tips for longer layovers, and ConnectionSaver alerts when United can hold your next flight
- Apple AirTag integration - if you travel with an AirTag, you can now share its location directly with United's customer service team to help locate a mishandled bag
- Automatic rebooking assistance - if your flight is delayed or canceled, the app proactively serves up personalized rebooking options along with meal and hotel vouchers when eligible, no line required
- Real-time weather radar texts - United is the first and only U.S. airline sending customers actual radar maps to explain how weather in one part of the country might affect a flight elsewhere
The United app has earned recognition for all of this. It was named Best Airline App by The Business Traveler North America in 2023 and won the Webby Award's People's Voice for Best Travel App in 2021. Looking at the list above, the recognition makes sense.
The United app's connection info and boarding update screens give you real-time situational awareness throughout your travel day.
A Word on the Timing
The TSA wait time launch did not happen in a vacuum. A partial government shutdown affecting the Department of Homeland Security has been ongoing, and while TSA officers have begun receiving back pay, the official sources for checkpoint wait time data have not been fully reliable. United built its own indicator inside the app as a direct response. That kind of practical problem-solving is exactly what a good travel app should do.
Even outside of the seven pilot airports, you can check TSA wait times through the MyTSA app or via individual airport websites. But having it built directly into your airline app on the day-of-travel page, alongside your boarding pass and connection info, is a meaningfully better experience. Make sure your United app is updated and check the Travel section before your next trip.
Scottie's Take
I talk a lot on this blog about earning and burning points, but the actual travel day experience matters just as much. Long travel days out of HNL, OGG, or KOA are already a grind before you even hit the mainland. The last thing you want is to arrive at a hub and have zero visibility into what is waiting for you at security.
Seeing that PreCheck is running 5 minutes versus 40 minutes in the standard lane, right there on your phone, is not just convenient. It makes the case for Global Entry in a way that no amount of points blog math can. If you have a credit card that covers the application fee and you have not used it yet, this is your sign.
LAX and SFO alone put this feature in front of a huge chunk of the Hawaii travel community. I hope United expands the pilot quickly and I am glad to see them investing in tools that make the actual journey better, not just the earning side of things.
Have you pulled up the new TSA wait time feature yet? Drop a comment below or reach out directly. Always glad to talk travel. Mahalo!
