Does the traveler need an intention to shorten the prayer?

Question : May Allah send blessings upon you. The questioner asks: What is the ruling on changing the intention in prayer from completing it to shortening it while traveling?

Answer : First, may Allah bless you. Know that the traveler does not need the intention to shorten the prayer.
For example, if a person is traveling and it is time for the Zuhr prayer, and he forgets to intend to shorten it, we say: What need is there to intend to shorten it? Pray two rak'ahs; there is no need for the intention, meaning the intention to shorten. Why? Because the default for the traveler's prayer is shortening, and what is the default does not require an intention. Just as a person praying in a settled state does not need to intend to follow an imam, so too, when praying while traveling, he does not need the intention to shorten.
If he intends to complete the prayer while traveling, we tell him: You have made a mistake. It is not prescribed for the traveler to complete the prayer. In fact, some scholars have said that it is forbidden (haram) for the traveler to complete it, and it is not permissible for him to do so. This is because the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) disapproved of the Commander of the Faithful, Uthman, when he completed the prayer in Mina. The Commander of the Faithful, Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), held the caliphate for twelve years. For the first six, seven, or eight years of his caliphate, he prayed in Mina by shortening the prayer, just as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), Abu Bakr, and 'Umar did. Then he began to complete it, praying four rak'ahs. The Companions disapproved of this in his case, but he interpreted the matter differently (ta'wil) and began to complete the prayer (may Allah be pleased with him).
My point in this is that if a person is traveling, he does not complete the prayer but shortens it, except if he prays with an imam who completes it, in which case he is required to complete it, whether he catches the imam at the beginning of the prayer or at the end. For example, if you catch the imam who is completing the prayer at the final tashahhud, you are required to complete the prayer, based on the general meaning of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):