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TSA braces for heavy traffic at Salt Lake City International Airport ahead of Thanksgiving holiday

Posted at 12:50 PM, Nov 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-11-19 14:50:12-05

SALT LAKE CITY -- As much as we all like to complain about it, more people than ever seem to be flying these days.

The Thanksgiving holiday is typically one of the busiest air travel times of the year, and 2019 may be even busier.

Salt Lake City International Airport in particular is preparing for an 8 percent increase in air travelers over last year’s holiday.

The number of folks descending on the airport will actually begin to build this Friday, but the traditional busiest day remains the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

That’s when an estimated 29,000 people will depart from Salt Lake City International.

“But don’t worry: TSA is prepared for this,” Lorie Dankers, TSA, said. “We’re going to extend the shifts of our officers, use overtime to do that, to leverage their presence to keep as many lanes open as possible.”

The words of advice from TSA are, as always: know before you go, and plan ahead.

Make sure you know what’s in your bags, both check-in and carry on.

The other pro tip: don’t wrap your presents and gifts, because if something shows up on the X-ray, the officer will likely unwrap it. So use a gift bag or something where the item is easily identified.

All of this is geared to making the flight as smooth as possible for you and the 26.8 million others who will be flying over the Thanksgiving holiday.