Airports Pass Test With Flying Colors

Prepared Passengers Help Reduce Wait Times During Holiday

Steve Palin, a Transportation Security Administration screener in Rhode Island, tells air travelers that gels and liquids must be packed in zip-top bags. (By Stew Milne -- Associated Press)

The Thanksgiving air travel rush ended smoothly yesterday thanks to some help from good weather and millions of travelers who seemed prepared to handle new security restrictions at airport checkpoints.

Authorities were especially worried about the potential for lengthy security lines during the holiday travel week because of recently revised bans on gels and liquids. But security and airport officials yesterday credited public education campaigns and increased staffing at check points with reducing peak wait times at Washington area airports and others across the country.

"We were ready," said Ellen Howe, a Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman. "The airlines and airports were ready. The public stepped up and learned the message. It's a team sport."

Local officials reported few problems during the holiday travel rush from Nov. 17 to yesterday, even as they handled a surge of travelers.

"It was a very busy week, but it was also smooth and efficient," said Jonathan Dean, a spokesman for the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

In August, the TSA banned all gels and liquids from the passenger cabins of aircraft after British police uncovered an alleged liquid-bomb plot. It amended the rules a month later, allowing small amounts of gels and liquids onto planes if they could fit into a small zip-top plastic bag.

"Just like the Boy Scouts, airports nationwide got the word out for travelers to be prepared" for the new rules, Dean said.

BWI reported a 12.5 percent increase in passenger traffic over the holiday week ended yesterday, compared with last year, Dean said. Peak wait times at BWI on Wednesday and Sunday, two of the busiest travel days, were about 11 minutes, down about a minute from October's average, the TSA said.

At Washington Dulles International Airport, peak wait times were 12 to 13 minutes on those days, also down from October's average of 25 minutes, the TSA said.

Reagan National Airport had peak wait times of slightly more than 12 minutes, less than October's average of 15 minutes.

The Air Transport Association, a trade group that represents U.S. airlines, predicted air travel would be up 3 percent during the Thanksgiving travel period, compared with last year.

Officials at the organization reported only a few problems during the holiday week, saying those were caused by local weather systems and increased air traffic, particularly in the New York area.