Arrival time at U.S. airports for international flights

You can get more objective info from websites such as http://www.ifly.com/los-angeles-international-airport/wait-times and https://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/status_home.aspx

I agonize over this decision a lot.

All the directives when leaving Israel say arrive 3 hours in advance, or 2.5 with online check-in. I go through the airport 2-3 times a year and I know there's nothing for me to do but sit and wait once I'm airside and the seats aren't all that comfortable. I usually have to get up in the middle of the night or very early in the morning, so every minute at the airport is one less for sleeping before an invariably sleepless flight. To top it off, the last few times I've flown, I've been airside within an hour. Last time, I think it was 35 minutes.

I never cut it close. Same on return flights. I know my anxiety level and I'd rather be calm before the flight and sit around the airport than be panicky for hours before getting to and through the airport.

Hi,

I never like cutting it close either, makes me nervous. For the departing flight SFO to Europe, I arrive at the airport 3.5 to 3 hrs prior to departure, even though it is recommended that 3 hrs should suffice. But what if it does not? Makes no difference to me whether I spend another half hour or more after clearing security, which could take 30 mins.

You spend $4000-7000 on a trip to Europe and I figure why chance missing a flight because I was 30-40 min late getting to the airport? I try to arrive 3 hours ahead of my flight but I am lucky because I do not live in a hub so getting through security is much less stressful than LAX or Atlanta, also we have TSA pre-check which is worth every cent (leave shoes on, don't remove liquids bag, much faster moving line,etc). I use to travel with a friend and she would always cut everything down to the minimum amount of time needed and she was frequently missing flights and even connecting flights and would get so upset and never could grasp the idea of building in a safety cushion when dealing with air travel. (I don't travel with her any more)

General advice would be to know your airport and the issues they have with Security, and make a judgement from there. In my own case, it is a regional airport, all small planes, so they board about a half hour before departure, I can get by with getting there an hour before, but usually target about 1 1/2 hours. Domestic or International makes no difference.

Based on recent reports though about TSA being understaffed, if you are using a major airport, you may stretch that to much longer. Oddly, it may be that I can get through security, on a plane, fly to Chicago, and be at a gate in less time than it takes someone to get through security in Chicago.

My flights were booked through a travel agent. She said three hours in Atlanta go by fast and recommended a four-hour layover there instead of almost 2.5 hours. My home airport also is regional, but I don't like that because it is boring and only carries small planes.

My daughter would have missed a plane for a domestic flight recently because the TSA lines at O'Hare were two hours long and she thought 2 hours was enough for a domestic flight. It was such a mess that the airline actually held the plane for a few minutes and she made it in a squeak with her family.

The current situation is really bad in many airports and I would be inclined to err on the side of an extra half hour to hour over the usual 3 hours. Go prepared to get lunch of breakfast or sit and read if you make it through quickly

Mike, thanks for the link to that web-site; looks very helpful. The only thing I don't like about it is if the line is longer than 28 minutes, it doesn't specify exactly how many minutes it would take to get through but at least it gives me an idea.

Thanks for all the input! You are all correct in that I'm spending a lot of money on this trip and what's an extra hour of my time to ensure that I get to my destination! I will just suck it up and leave earlier and plan to be at the airport 4 hours before my flight. My brother is a pilot and is trying to talk me into the TSA Pre-Check program but we travel pretty infrequently and I just can't justify spending $200 for my hubby & myself when we fly every 2-4 years.

DonnyBee, yes, I live 10 minutes away from Ontario airport and although it is an international airport, there are no direct flights to Europe (at least to the cities we fly into). I try to cut down on the number of plane changes as each change is an opportunity for our luggage to get lost or mis-placed so I'd rather "schlep" to LAX and fly direct than have to deal with 1 or 2 stops. Therefore, Ontario is not a viable option for me except when we fly to Portland to visit my in-laws, then it's a breeze & we can fly direct! I agree with you regarding how far behind other major cities LA is in terms of not having good airport transportation (trains, etc.). In general, LA is way behind every major city in the world in terms of having a comprehensive mass transit system. I heard that the car companies protested a mass transit system in L.A. and therefore we're all married to our cars and have no alternative but to sit in terrible traffic all the time! Sure we have Metrolink but by no means is it comprehensive or very practical. Thanks for your suggestions.

3 hours is more than sufficient.

Recent experiences where I live have been all over the place - a few minutes to over 90 minutes to clear the TSA lines in Seattle. That's for domestic flights. And that's been in the spring, well before the peak sumer travel season. It's going to get a lot worse from June - August.

I'd give it 3 hours to be safe. You get through early, I highly recommend a pre-departure massage (now available in many airports) - it really helps work out the pre-departure stress and gets you nice and relaxed for the flight ahead. And killing time in a nice lounge is pretty sweet, too, if you can gain entry.

Better to be way early and have time to kill rather than stressing over making your flight and perhaps missing it - that's a rotten way to begin a trip.

Someone else mentioned TSA Pre-Check and while I'm not sure when your trip is or if you travel often, but it might be something to look into. I believe it only works when flying from one USA airport to another, but even if your itinerary is through to CDG, if your first stop is a layover in USA, then it would qualify. I travel often and my friend gave me the money for TSA Pre-Check as a gift, and it has saved me LOTS of waiting.

Thanks Monique. I looked into it but we don't fly often enough to justify the cost and Air France does not participate in the program therefore it wouldn't help us for this trip.

With no pre-check, I would allow for 3 hours. International flights will have more check-in and boarding procedures and you don't want to be stuck in a long TSA line. If you miss a domestic flight, you can catch the next one in an hour or so. If you miss your international flight, your whole vacation is messed up. Just plan on having a snack or drink while you wait once you are through.

I live in Southern California and the local news has been covering this a lot. There has been reports of people who got to the airport 3 hours early and still missed their flight. I specifically remember one couple who were flying to Hawaii. The Tom Bradley terminal (International flights) seemed to be better organized for getting thru TSA than some of the other Terminals. Traffic can be nightmare during rush hours so keep that in mind. If you are having a driver take you to the airport, you might suggest that they drive you to the arrival level at LAX. I find there is less traffic getting to the terminal than on the departure level. They can let you off in front of the terminal and you can take an escalator to the upper level.

Can someone explain the pre-check and the idea that some airlines don't participate? If you qualify and have the number do you have an ID card that allows you to use it regardless or does it have to be printed on the boarding pass?

And the idea that if you miss your flight you can just hop the next one ignores the fact that you have to pay a walk up fee for whatever that tickets costs. Airline tickets are basically worthless if you miss your flight -- big money gone -- you can for a huge fee change the flight, but you can't do that if the flight has already gone. You just lose the money.

Here is the page to the TSA website listing the airlines that participate and yes, it's printed on your boarding pass.

https://www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck/alaska-airlines-tsa-precheck-locations

I am not signed up for TSA pre-check but I usually get it when I fly Delta out of my local airport. Not that it makes much difference as there is only one line but I can leave my shoes on and leave the 3-1-1 in the carry on. Without signing up for the program you can't enter a Known Traveler Number to your airline profile, but the status can be assigned to you when they print out your boarding pass.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/13/aviation/tsa-long-lines-us-airports/

The Celeste quoted in this article is NOT me.

And the idea that if you miss your flight you can just hop the next one ignores the fact that you have to pay a walk up fee for whatever that tickets costs. Airline tickets are basically worthless if you miss your flight -- big money gone -- you can for a huge fee change the flight, but you can't do that if the flight has already gone. You just lose the money.

No. If you checked in and missed the flight waiting in line at security, most likely the airline will put you on their next flight. They know this is happening and have even delayed flights to give people time to get through the lines. Technically they don't have to help you out, and if they know you showed up at the airport 20 minutes prior to departure they might say tough luck, but for the most part they are treating missed flights due to security lines as like a missed connection.

And to answer your question, to use PreCheck you must have your KTN entered with your airline who prints it on the boarding pass. You cannot show your ID card to use the PreCheck lines. So you are limited to airlines that participate.