how much time to you allow before your flight at airport

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

we have a 7:50 out of Fort Myers on May 7. Our friends have volunteered to drive us, and we are driving them for a trip before this date, but they are pretty insistent we need to get to the airport by 5:00 am that morning. it seems a little extreme to me, but I haven't flown lately.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

we have a 7:50 out of Fort Myers on May 7. Our friends have volunteered to drive us, and we are driving them for a trip before this date, but they are pretty insistent we need to get to the airport by 5:00 am that morning. it seems a little extreme to me, but I haven't flown lately.

It is Saturday which is a busy travel day. But it is also off season, most snow birds are already home.
I assume you are flying domestic, not international.
I assume you did not apply or have TSA Pre check although you "could" end up with it. You would know when you get your boarding passes 24 hours ahead.

With these circumstances and the airport you are leaving from (not International) I would say a 5:50-6:00 drop off would be fine.


And honestly, if you have a problem and miss your flight, it would be your problem not theirs.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

"How much preflight time should I allow when planning my trip to the airport?

Please contact your airline and ask for its recommendation. Recommended check-in times differ by airline and change during peak travel times. Click here for a list of airlines, their toll-free phone numbers and links to their websites. During peak travel times, the Transportation Security Administration recommends that passengers arrive at the airport at least two hours before their scheduled departure time for a domestic flight and three hours prior to the departure of an international flight."

http://www.flylcpa.com/faq/faq1/

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

"How much preflight time should I allow when planning my trip to the airport?

Please contact your airline and ask for its recommendation. Recommended check-in times differ by airline and change during peak travel times. Click here for a list of airlines, their toll-free phone numbers and links to their websites. During peak travel times, the Transportation Security Administration recommends that passengers arrive at the airport at least two hours before their scheduled departure time for a domestic flight and three hours prior to the departure of an international flight."

http://www.flylcpa.com/faq/faq1/

Airline???
Nope, she asked us experts

[jackio Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close jackio]

The last 2 times I traveled from our small regional airport (Islip MacArthur), I got there 90 minutes early and the TSA lines were crazy. It took me an hour to get through. The Pre-check line was not open. You used to be able to arrive an hour before the flight and have no problem. Each time there was only one conveyor belt open. I don't know if they are trying to cut staff to save money, but next week when I fly to Orlando on our spring break, I will arrive about 2 hours early.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

To me it all depends on the airport. Some are much better than others. For example 1 hour is fine for our local airport Ontario International ( Ontario California ) because it is very easy to get in and through security. I allow at least 2 hours for LAX. I would allow anywhere from 1-2 hours.

[mpizza Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mpizza]

If you check-in on line and carry-on, arriving 60 minutes prior should be sufficient time to get thru security. Except Orlando!

Caution, airlines are getting strict on advanced check-in. A co-worker was denied boarding because they weren't checked-in 1 hour before BOARDING time, not take-off.

I love most airports, so don't mind being early, having coffee, shopping, picking-up reading material and water/snacks for the flight, so I personally plan to arrive 2 hours prior. I also need to account for NJ/NY traffic, which is usually a wild card.

Curious, for the flight you are chauffeuring, how far in advance are they asking for a drop off?

Maria

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

EWR Terminal C was a ZOO last Saturday. I had gotten there 2 hours prior to boarding time 2:20 before flight. People were in tears in security lines, missing their planes.

TSA laid off 10% of their workforce in anticipation of travelers shelling out money for the Pre-check preference ( which comes free with the Global Entry ). They didn't. Now airlines are being allowed to add more flights daily. More flights, more people, less security personnel.

I had pre-check courtesy of United and I know I got lucky because paying with your airline c/c no longer guarantees that status.

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

our friends want to leave at 4:45 for their flight also, they are both type A and will probably be up all night worrying. We will be checking bags, and we have to close down our Florida house that morning, which takes a bit of time, but I thought arriving about 5:30 or 5:45 would be plenty of time

[chriskre Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close chriskre]

Take Uber and go whenever you want.

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

our friends just called and now want to leave at 4:30 for the ten minute ride to the airport for a 7:30 flight.

[wackymother Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wackymother]

Is Fort Myers a big airport? We just took a trip where we went through Newark (big, and security was a mess and United emailed us to add an hour to whatever time we thought it would take us to get through security), O'Hare (big, but security was pretty orderly and moved along), and Des Moines (small and an hour ahead of boarding worked just fine).

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

Fort Myers is small, most people allow one hour, I think my friend needs some Valium, she stresses out so much when she travels.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

The last 2 times I traveled from our small regional airport (Islip MacArthur), I got there 90 minutes early and the TSA lines were crazy. It took me an hour to get through. The Pre-check line was not open. You used to be able to arrive an hour before the flight and have no problem. Each time there was only one conveyor belt open. I don't know if they are trying to cut staff to save money, but next week when I fly to Orlando on our spring break, I will arrive about 2 hours early.

You are also flying on LI Spring break week. I would definitely arrive 2+ hours ahead to ISP.
Have a nice trip.

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

what is LI?