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The number of holiday travelers flying to their Thanksgiving gatherings is on the rise this year. Indianapolis International Airport expects this year to be one of its busiest. Director of Public Affairs Meghan Carrico said the airport sees the most foot traffic from 5 to 7 a.m.
“We're anticipating a 10 to 15 percent increase in passenger traffic, the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and a 20 to 25 percent increase in travelers the Sunday after Thanksgiving,” Carrico said. “Get here early, plan ahead especially if you're flying in that early morning time frame, by arriving two hours ahead.”
Travelers can lower wait times in line and reduce stress by knowing in advance what is permitted through checkpoints.
“If you haven't traveled in a while, familiarize yourself with what you can and cannot bring onto an aircraft and [the Transportation Security Administration] has got some great resources online and also on an app,” Carrico said. “When TSA has to pull a bag or do a secondary search, that can certainly cause a backup in the line and we just don't want people to have to wait longer than they need to.”
The TSA said travel volumes may reach pre-pandemic levels during the Thanksgiving travel period. The agency is preparing to screen as many as 2.5 million passengers at checkpoints nationwide on Wednesday and may be even busier on Sunday.
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