Passengers share their Fourth of July weekend travel experiences

BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – The month of July tends to be one of the busiest for passengers at Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport and other airports across the country.

Those flying out on Saturday had to come in a little bit earlier than usual to make sure they made their flight in time.

The sound of luggage wheels and brief chattering among passengers filled Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport on Saturday.

Lines of people were wrapped around the terminal waiting to get checked in by TSA.

ECP airport officials, during the busy summer season, are asking for passengers to arrive at the airport three hours before departure time.

“Airport officials are recommending that passengers that are traveling during this summer season if you’re traveling on a weekend, they’re recommending you arrive at least 3 hours ahead of your departure time,” ECP Airport PR Counsel Katie Spillman said.

Spillman says these requests apply mostly to weekends.

“And if you’re traveling during a normal weekday, during the summer season, encouraging passengers to arrive about 2 hours before their departure, time to allow enough time to park, get to the terminal and of course, go through the TSA checkpoint,” Spillman said.

Airport officials say early arrival even applied to those using TSA precheck. More than 200,000 passengers came through ECP Airport last month and can expect a lot more coming through this month.

“We’re continuing to see high numbers in July as well,” Spillman added.

One father-daughter duo came in from Georgia and were waiting in the terminal to pick up a relative.

“Pick up a sister-in-law coming in from Austin, Texas. Going from one hot part of the country to another hot part,” passenger Rick Massey said.

The Massey’s say even with the long lines the airport staff is moving it along pretty well.

“I’m from Atlanta. Big L.A. Airport. A lot but what about an hour-long wait? I mean, it ain’t the best, but, you know, hey, they’re doing okay with the holiday weekend,” passengers Abby and Rick Massey said.

Another passenger was making a special delivery to be shipped off to New York.

Dog breeder, Kate Burch arrived at the airport Saturday morning with a poodle named Drake.

“So Drake is a standard poodle. We actually breed standard poodles as well as golden doodles. We’ve got a farm with no sheep, chickens, all of that. They all live in our home with us. So we’re not like our standard kennels,” Nokoluma Farm owner Kate Burch said.

Drake got to meet his new owner and they flew off to the Big Apple later that evening.

“It’s amazing. We actually have a lot of our pets that end up being service dogs as well. So breeding for that temperament and just knowing that they’re going to loving homes is what we look for,” Burch said.

Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport TSA is only able to scan 450 to 500 passengers an hour.