Another View: How to make holiday air travel as smooth as possible

The holiday season is fast approaching. Many already have their tickets in hand, or are starting to look for flights. Many people who travel during the holidays are once or twice-a-year air travelers, typically less experienced with the system and airport security than frequent business travelers. This means they may not be as familiar with protocols in place and how to traverse the system with minimal interruptions.

For those who have yet to purchase tickets, flying on off-peaks days will give you more flexibility (and perhaps less expensive fares). For example, traveling on Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day is always easier than the day or two before. With Christmas falling on a Wednesday this year, the travel window will be longer, extending over several days, which should make airports and airplanes less congested.

Airport security can be a breeze if you understand how it operates. The Transportation Security Administration is prepared for multiple days with around 3 million passengers to screen. They already experienced this volume on July 7, so they know how to manage such congestion.

If you want the swiftest pathway through security, enroll in TSA Precheck. Precheck-vetted passengers are subjected to expedited screening, which means you can leave your shoes on and keep laptops and 3-1-1 liquids in your carry-on bag.

Sometimes Precheck lanes get backed up, so passing through standard screening lanes may be quicker. Having Precheck gives you the flexibility to go through either type of lane.

If you are planning to bring gifts, do not wrap them until you get to your final destination. Depending on what you are bringing, the TSA officer may need to examine packages, which could mean unwrapping the items.

Better yet, ship gifts ahead of time to your destination so they are waiting for you upon arrival. This will make your carry-on and checked bags less cluttered and lighter, and less likely to draw attention from TSA officers.

Inclement weather is one of the most common reasons why flights are delayed or canceled (the top cause is air traffic control restrictions). Begin to check the weather forecast two days before you travel. Airlines have begun to realize that proactively avoiding problems is better than solving problems when flights get delayed or canceled. Many will allow you to change at no cost to avoid such issues.

Check alternative flight options on your airline and other airlines. Being prepared with such information may not solve your problem, but it may help the airline agents who you are working with accommodate you if your flight is canceled due to a mechanical issue or some other airline-specific problem. Airlines have agreements that allow them to transfer a ticket to another airline. Such flexibility can be the difference between being stuck in a hotel room to catch a flight the next day or reaching your destination with minimal delays.

Expected the unexpected. The air system is highly complex and intertwined, with many moving parts. It may be sunny where you are, yet if your departing flight’s airplane is coming in from the northeast where there is bad weather, your flight may be delayed. Airlines are constantly reassigning airplanes and crews to flights, which could result in a smaller than expected aircraft, so not all people booked on the flight can be accommodated.

If your flight is oversold and you have some flexibility, you may be able to secure a travel voucher for future travel. This may mean that you will arrive a day later than expected, but that voucher can be helpful when booking your next holiday trip.

Be kind. The airline agents working on Thanksgiving or Christmas Eve are the frontline people. They are missing their holiday celebrations so you will not. They cannot make bad weather go away, nor can they fix a broken engine component. They are the bearers of bad news when flights are delayed or canceled. Remember to thank them for all they are doing, even if your flight gets canceled and you arrive at your holiday event late.

Air travel during the holidays can be an adventure. The good news is that to make your holiday a good one, you don’t need a sleigh with eight tiny reindeer. Just follow these few simple rules and increase the chance that you can travel “like the down of a thistle.”

Sheldon H. Jacobson is a professor of computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. ©2024 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.