Airport users encouraged to arrive early to avoid missed flights
ASPEN, COLO. (Feb. 7, 2024) - Problems with security equipment and terminal capacity have led to long lines and frustrations for some passengers at the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport. Since mid-January, a new scanning machine in airport security has repeatedly gone down and required regular repairs. The airport security area is limited in space and can only accommodate a total of two scanning machines, so Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials have solely relied on one scanner when the faulty machine requires repairs. This reduced capacity, where two lanes are reduced to one, has led to long passenger lines, sometimes stretching outside of the terminal, particularly during peak mid-day travel times.
“During a particularly challenging day on Monday, February 5, about 300 people were waiting in line. Some had to wait over two hours to get through security. Airline staff and our employees worked to help people make their flights by moving passengers to the front of the line. Still, on some flights, up to ten people missed their flights,” said Dan Bartholomew, airport director.
Even without the technology hiccups, the airport regularly experiences long lines at security during peak holiday periods. This is when airport and airline staff perform “line management” to help people get through security as quickly as possible.
“In general, we need more lanes. We only have two and we don’t have room to expand the security space in the existing passenger terminal,” said Bartholomew.
As of Wednesday afternoon (2/7/24), the security scanning machine is functioning but airport staff are still encouraging airport passengers to arrive at least two hours ahead of their flights, especially if their flights are during peak mid-day times.
Media contact: Marci Suazo, Pitkin County Communications Manager, marci.suazo@pitkincounty.com, (970) 309-2343