What happens if you miss a flight due to long airport lines?

(NewsNation) — Long airport security lines tied to Transportation Security Administration staffing shortages are causing travelers to miss flights, prompting airlines to waive change fees for some affected passengers.

Airlines generally aren’t required to accommodate passengers who miss flights due to security delays, but they will usually try to rebook travelers on the next available flight, according to Clint Hendreson, managing editor at The Points Guy.

“The problem is there’s not a lot of seats available when it’s spring break, so the airline may not have another flight to put you on for a couple days,” Henderson said.

Major carriers, including Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, are offering rebooking flexibility for travelers at some of the hardest hit airports, including Atlanta for Delta and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport for United.

For travelers who think they may miss a flight, Henderson said it’s important to contact the airline as soon as possible before rebooking options fill up.

“Stay in the security line, call the airline, get on the airline app, get on social media, do all the things that you can to try to get yourself protected,” he said.

What airlines are doing amid security delays

Delta is offering additional flexibility for travelers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, its main hub.

In a travel advisory, the airline said, “Due to longer security wait times, travel originating from ATL may be affected.”

According to the advisory, impacted travelers between March 23-30 who rebook on or before April 6 will have fare differences waived, provided they remain in the same cabin.

For those who reschedule beyond the April 6 window, Delta said change fees will still be waived, though a fare difference may apply.

Customers who can’t reschedule within the given timeframe can also cancel their reservation and apply any unused ticket value toward the purchase of a new ticket within a year.

Atlanta airport officials are currently advising passengers to allow at least four hours to get through security.

United is waiving change fees and fare differences for eligible travelers affected at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, where security lines have stretched beyond four hours in recent days.

The waiver applies to passengers who rebook a new United flight departing as late as March 27, provided they remain in the same cabin and between the same cities, with some exceptions for nearby airports.

The extra flexibility applies to those who purchased their original ticket on or before March 22.

Travelers who miss flights due to longer-than-normal airport security lines will be “reaccommodated free of charge on the next flight with seats available, in accordance with our longstanding policy,” an American Airlines spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the airline’s website listed active travel waivers tied to the recent closure at LaGuardia International Airport in New York after a crash on the runway and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

A Southwest spokesperson said the airline has not seen any significant issues with its operation recently.

“We are assisting customers in airports experiencing extended wait times, including waivers to change travel, accepting checked bags well in advance of scheduled flights, and rebooking customers who miss their flights with no additional charge,” spokesperson Chris Perry said in an email.

Not all airports are affected as staffing levels fluctuate

Security wait times have varied widely from airport to airport — and even hour to hour.

Part of that is because some airports have been hit harder by TSA staffing shortages than others, with conditions shifting day to day.

A partial government shutdown has left TSA officers working without pay since mid-February, and more than 450 have left the workforce so far.

On Tuesday, about 11 percent of the scheduled TSA officers — more than 3,160 — called out from work, according to the Department of Homeland Security. At some airports, including Atlanta, Houston and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, callout rates were around 40 percent.

The unpredictable staffing has made it difficult for travelers to plan ahead — with some arriving hours early only to breeze through security, while others have encountered hourslong lines or found expedited screening options like TSA PreCheck and CLEAR unavailable.

“Most major airports have done a fairly good job of keeping things moving,” Henderson said, noting that the worst of the recent delays have largely been concentrated in the New York City area as well as Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans.

How to check airport security wait times

Several major airports continue to publish real-time TSA wait time data, allowing travelers to check conditions before heading to the airport.

Others, including Hartsfield-Jackson, JFK and Baltimore/Washington International Airport, have temporarily stopped posting that data.

Find your airport’s wait time tracker in the table below.

Note: * denotes an airport where security wait time data is currently unavailable (updated 6 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 25)

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