WINDSOR LOCKS, CT (WGGB/WSHM) – Christmas is just four days away and that means the holiday excitement is building up and people are already rushing to get to their loved ones. Whether you’re hitting the roads or taking to the skies, be ready to be patient as holiday travel has officially begun.
People were already rushing to the airport on Thursday as they tried to beat the holiday rush and get to their loved ones.
“I’ve tried to avoid it like the plague. However, if I can be with my family, I’ll do it,” said Karen Skiathitis from Greenfield.
For travelers like Skiathitis, flying so close to Christmas could be a challenge. According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Thursday and Friday are expected to be the busiest travel days ahead of Christmas day. With the TSA expected to screen more than 2.5 million travelers on each of those days. It’s something that doesn’t scare travelers like Erik Mills away from flying.
“The airport is really well under control right now and I don’t let those things worry me. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. We’ve got bigger issues to worry about. Travel is not one,” Mill said.
Mills shared with us his one tip for his travels to go smoothly.
“Well, we do try to do direct flights. We don’t want to do any connecting flights because then there is more risk for error,” Mills added.
At Bradley International Airport, lines have been forming all day long, but travelers have encountered minimal issues. Western Mass News spoke to Connecticut Airport Authority Brian Sypros, who told us that they are expecting the busiest travel times to be from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. and once again in the evening, after 6 p.m.
“We are in a very busy time of year and, according to projections, from December 20 to December 31, we are anticipating that more than 110,000 people will travel out of Bradley Airport. Today was a very busy day tomorrow and Saturday, also expected to be very busy as people head to those Christmas destinations,” Spyros said.
Spyros also told us about the main challenge TSA is experiencing at the airport.
“A lot of people have wrapped gifts in their carry-ons or their checked bags for family and friends. The problem with that is if any of those items set-off any of the detection machines, TSA has to unwrap it and inspect it, so the TSA really encourages people to put items in gift bags or to just wait to wrap them until you get to your destination,” Spyros explained.
Our crew at the airport has been monitoring the arrival and departure boards all day and even spoke off-camera with some airline employees and, so far, there have been no cancelations or delays.
Copyright 2023. Western Mass News (WGGB/WSHM). All rights reserved.