Waiting in long lines at Charlotte airport security checkpoints is becoming an increasingly frustrating experience for passengers as the summer season continues amid what airport officials expect will be record crowds.
Passengers recently took to social media to complain about having to wait through long lines at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints at Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
One user on “Holy cow, the check-in process at CLT is so bad,” he wrote. “You must be here about three hours early, I think.”
“Just a disaster this morning,” said another user recently on X. “Not enough daily parking shuttles. One TSA checkpoint is closed. Two lanes that handle all TSA (40 minute wait). No one directs people, no one checks PreCheck before they get in line. Charlotte could be so much better.
But TSA and CLT officials said to expect longer security lines than usual this summer season, which is expected to be the busiest yet for the Charlotte airport. And with the 4th of July holiday just around the corner, foot traffic isn’t going to slow down anytime soon.
Why the long wait at CLT?
Before Memorial Day weekend, CLT leaders said they expected to break summer travel records. They also warned passengers to be prepared for long lines.
Charlotte Douglas is the seventh busiest airport in the world, according to Airport Council International’s preliminary 2022 rankings.
American Airlines accounts for approximately 90% of all flights at the airport. CLT is the second largest hub for the Forth Worth, Texas-based company.
The airline expects to serve more than 8 million passengers in Charlotte with 75,000 flights between May 17 and September 3. Compared to last summer, this is an increase of 12% and will exceed pre-pandemic flying levels, according to American.
American Airlines has added new kiosks at CLT to speed up the ticketing process. A second bag drop was also added to ease pedestrian traffic during peak periods.
At CLT, anything above 35,000 passengers is a busy day, while anything above 40,000 is “very busy” and 45,000 is “extremely busy,” according to Daniel Velez, TSA vpokesman for North Carolina.
TSA’s standard is to get people through a line in about 30 minutes or less, Velez said. While there have been complaints about people waiting for hours, the longest wait times in the past week were less than 50 minutes, he added.
Velez said upset passengers are likely to add to the time it takes to check in with airlines and drop off their luggage. “I think they put it all together and come up with times,” he said.
The actual time people waited in line was no more than 46 minutes around mid-June.
“That is still above our standard of 30 minutes. So you know I can understand people’s frustrations. But to say that they were on the same page for hours is not true.”
Charlotte’s TSA had a few days longer than 45 minutes this month due to flight delays, Velez said.
TSA screened 37,418 people on June 11, with wait times ranging from 38 to 46 minutes. There were four delayed flights compared to the previous day.
June 13 was TSA’s fourth busiest day at CLT this year, with 44,374 people screened. The standard wait time around 9am was 45 minutes due to flight delays.
“You have all those people who have to fly and go through security the day before they try to check in, along with people who are regularly scheduled on that particular day,” Velez said. “So that could cause some problems.”
Equipment failures can close lanes and cause delays, Velez said. “Our equipment is just like any other equipment in the world,” he said. “It can break easily and it needs some maintenance.”
Construction work at the airport with limited space is likely to cause confusion for passengers, Velez added.
“Sometimes people get in the wrong line,” he said. “And they stand in line for a while and then they realize they’re in the wrong line.”
A spokesperson for Charlotte Douglas International Airport declined to comment on the latest security delays at the airport and referred questions to the TSA.
Other delays at Charlotte Douglas
CLT is no stranger to lag issues.
Last year, the Thanksgiving and Christmas weekends weren’t too kind to travelers in Charlotte Douglas due to vehicle traffic delays near the terminal.
Traffic improvements have been made at the airport between holidays. Some of the changes included communicating with the public on social media; working with the North Carolina and Charlotte departments of transportation for real-time traffic updates; placing airport staff and police in areas where vehicular and pedestrian traffic can be better facilitated; changing traffic lights; and rerouting shuttle buses.
Prepare for the lines at CLT
Airport officials are encouraging passengers to add extra time to their schedules to avoid traffic jams while paying attention to road conditions.
Passengers must arrive at the terminal for at least two hours before a domestic flight and three hours before an international flight, officials said.
“People often arrive at the airport very late – maybe 30 to 40 minutes before the plane takes off,” Velez said. “Not a good idea.”
CLT also asks customers to reserve a parking space in advance online at parkCLT.com. Estimated waiting times for security checks are available on the airport website and via the app. On Friday, June 21, two of the four standard checkpoints were closed. A CLT spokesperson said one was closed due to construction work. According to the website, wait times that day were between 10 and 44 minutes.
“All this time adds up so I can understand people’s frustrations,” Velez said.
“If airports across the country have more passengers than expected, TSA will transfer agents to security checkpoints that actually need more assistance,” Velez said.
TSA also encourages passengers to sign up for TSA PreCheck, a program that allows U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents to undergo expedited screening. There is no need to remove shoes, laptops, liquids, belts and light jackets, according to the website.
The standard PreCheck takes approximately 10 minutes or less. “And we did that all week,” Velez said, referring to the week of June 10.
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