Could someone confirm for me that when my wife and I fly domestically
this coming weekend that she will be able to board the plane:

Her ticket is under her married name.
Her Driver's License is under her maiden name.
We will carry a certified copy of the marriage license when we travel.
(This is unrelated, but since someone may suggest it - her passport is
not available as it is in transit to be renewed under her married
name.)

One link to a government page or a few to some airline pages will
suffice as an answer to this question.

Hello grammatoncleric-ga,

Thank you for inviting me to post my comment as the answer.  I live in
Los Angeles, so I decided to see if there was any information at the
LAX website. I did a search for ?marriage?.

I found the following information:

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
TRAVELERS TIPS 
http://www.lawa.org/lax/htmlpass/dspttipstext.asp
?All adult passengers must have a picture I.D. (driver's
license/passport/government-issued I.D.). When making reservations,
use the exact name appearing on the I.D. you will present at the
airport. If your name has changed and the name on your ticket and your
I.D. differ, bring documentation of the change (e.g., a marriage
certificate or court order).?


I tried the same search at the San Jose Airport website with no luck. 
I found the following page with tips for travelers, but it has only
one brief comment on identification:

Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport
Traveler Tips
http://www.sjc.org/travelers/tips.html
?Photo I.D. will be required at multiple locations.?


I also looked at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
website.  I found the following information about identification, but
there was no mention of name changes or marriage.

Travelers & Consumers
Prepare For Takeoff  
http://www.tsa.gov/public/interapp/editorial/editorial_1044.xml
?If you have a paper ticket for a domestic flight, passengers age 18
and over must present one form of photo identification issued by a
local state or federal government agency (e.g.: passport/drivers
license/military ID), or two forms of non-photo identification, one of
which must have been issued by a state or federal agency (e.g.: U.S.
social security card). For an international flight, you will need to
present a valid passport, visa, or any other required documentation.
Passengers without proper ID may be denied boarding.

For e-tickets, you will need to show your photo identification and
e-ticket receipt to receive your boarding pass.?


My guess is that showing the marriage certificate will be acceptable
at most airports as it is at LAX.  Enjoy your trip!

Googlenut



Search Strategy:

Google Search Terms:

los angeles international airport
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=los+angeles+international+airport

san jose airport
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&safe=off&c2coff=1&q=san+jose+airport&btnG=Google+Search

Searched the airport websites for ?marriage? and other terms related
to identification.

I also searched the TSA website for ?marriage? and other terms related
to identification.

The simple solution would probably be to get on the ball while you
still have time and have the ticket changed to her maiden name, which
she can provide proof of.

Regards;
tutuzdad-ga

Hello grammatoncleric-ga,

I found the following at the Los Angeles International Airport website:

TRAVELERS TIPS 
http://www.lawa.org/lax/htmlpass/dspttipstext.asp
?All adult passengers must have a picture I.D. (driver's
license/passport/government-issued I.D.). When making reservations,
use the exact name appearing on the I.D. you will present at the
airport. If your name has changed and the name on your ticket and your
I.D. differ, bring documentation of the change (e.g., a marriage
certificate or court order).?

You may want to check the websites of airports that you will be
traveling through.  I did a search for ?marriage?.

Googlenut

I found this, which is very similar to Googlenut's quote:

"You must have a picture I. D. such as a driver?s license, passport,
or government-issued identification. Insure that you make your
reservation in the exact name that appears on the identification you
plan on presenting at the airport. If your name has recently changed
and the name on your ticket and your I. D. are different, bring
documentation of the change (e.g., a marriage certificate or court
order). If traveling with an e-ticket, you must produce a copy of your
e-ticket receipt when you check-in."

http://www.garristravel.com/Research/Articles/airportsecurity.htm

More along the same lines:

"All adult passengers must have a picture I.D. (driver ?s
license/passport/government-issued I.D.).
When making reservations, use the exact name appearing on the I.D. you
will present at the airport. If your name has changed and the name on
your ticket and your I.D. differ, bring documentation of the change
(e.g., a marriage certificate or court order)."

http://www.edrtravel.com/security.html

"Be absolutely sure to bring a picture I.D. such as a driver?s
license, passport, or other government-issued identification with you.
Ensure that you make your reservation in the exact name that appears
on the identification you plan to present at the airport. If your name
has recently changed and the names on your ticket and your I.D. are
different, bring documentation of the change (e.g., a marriage
certificate or court order)."

http://www.usembassy.ro/InfoA/new04.htm

googlenut, pinkfreud,

Thanks for the confirmation (no pun intended).  I knew this to be
true, but I just wanted to be sure just in case.  googlenut - please
post your comment as an answer.  Interestingly enough, I used your
cursory search strategy to see if I could find pages with rules for
San Jose International Airport...and searching for 'SJC' and
'marriage' (on Google of course) gave me links primarily to
Massachusetts' Supreme Judicial Court's rulings on gay marriage. 
Funny...okay, I'm off topic now...anyway, thank you.

tutuzdad,

Tell me...will airlines actually reissue tickets in a new (e.g.
married) name for the same person at no or minimal cost?  Rules
usually dictate that tickets cannot be changed to a new name - they
have to be cancelled, but that's usually to prevent a) fraud and b)
people from giving tickets to friends/family just becuase they can't
or won't use them.  Thanks for your input, too.

-The Grammaton Cleric