Austin airport gears up for super busy spring season

As the rest of the city prepares for a deluge of visitors for SXSW, Dell Match Play, NASCAR, Texas Relays and the CMT Awards, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport has also taken steps to prepare for the March and April influx of passengers. Towanda Cordon, acting deputy chief of operations for AUS, says travelers should arrive earlier than normal and “pack their patience as our teams prepare for their arrival.”

That means arriving 2.5 hours early for domestic flights and 3 hours early for international flights. Bear in mind that the airport hosted more than 1.8 million passengers through the airport during March 2022 – making it the busiest March in airport history. Airlines are offering 10 percent more seats than last year, and airport officials are predicting that March 2023 will top March 2022.

Peak departure travel times are 5 to 8 a.m., 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. During these times passengers may encounter longer waits at security checkpoints. Passengers who have TSA PreCheck will have shorter wait times, and the federal agency is offering passengers the option to sign up for the service once they have cleared the regular TSA line.

Gun owners should bear in mind that it is illegal to carry a firearm in their carry-on luggage, a fact that numerous Austin passengers have either not known or forgotten. However, guns are allowed in checked and locked luggage.

AUS also wants you to know the airport is offering a special music lineup, featuring 52 different live music performances starting Monday, March 13, and continuing through Friday. March 17. You can view a detailed schedule of the airport’s nine music stages on the Live Music in the Air at AUS program web page.