Just when it seemed the passport logjam was starting to ease, passengers faced another obstacle Tuesday: Some airlines refused to let them board planes because they didn't have birth certificates.
In yet another embarrassment for the State Department, a temporary measure enacted Friday to reduce a huge backlog of passports is now leading to more unexpected aggravation.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Saturday June 16, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 2 inches; 74 words Type of Material: Correction
Passports: An information box in Section A on Wednesday accompanying an article on passport problems said Canada and Mexico required travelers to present proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, to enter. In practice, people driving into these countries are often asked to show only a driver's license or a photo ID. The box said Canada would not accept a certified copy of a birth certificate. A certified copy is acceptable.
"It's a real bummer," said Alex Alvarado, a 10-year-old Needles resident who was blocked from boarding a plane to Mexico City for a summer soccer camp because he didn't have a birth certificate -- something that Mexico requires if you don't have a passport.
In a move to lessen passport backlogs nationwide last week, the U.S. government told travelers that they could visit Mexico, Canada, Bermuda and the Caribbean this summer with only a government-issued photo ID and a receipt showing that they had applied for a passport.
But when Alvarado and his parents got to the ticket counter, they were turned away because Mexico requires proof of U.S. citizenship with a passport, a birth certificate or certified copy of it, or a naturalization document.
Alvarado was one of about a dozen passengers trying to board a Mexicana Airlines flight Tuesday at Los Angeles International Airport on the misconception that the requirements announced Friday by the State Department were the only things needed to fly.
The State Department had waived passport requirements in hopes of speeding up the passport application process for all other international travel. The effort to unclog the logjam is expected to take the entire summer.
For Alvarado there was one more hitch: The State Department has his birth certificate along with the passport application that had yet to be processed even though his paperwork had been sent in three months ago.
"I just don't know what to say or what to do," said Alvarado's father, Luis, who drove four hours from the San Bernardino County town to send his son off to a "dream" soccer camp.
Mexicana officials said that Mexico's entry requirement was clearly noted in the ticket information but that some passengers may have been confused by last Friday's announcement of the U.S. passport waiver, which applies only to leaving and entering the U.S. Mexicana spokeswoman Theresa Bravo said Tuesday that the airline had not heard any complaints from U.S. travelers being turned away at LAX because of the mix-up.
