How early one needs to get to the airport before departure depends on whether one is on a domestic or an International Flight
. It has been a staple view that one needs to arrive at the airport three hours before departure if you are scheduled for an international flight. For Domestic Flights
, one should arrive two hours prior to departure,

though people wonder if we should arrive at the airport so early
.

A Departure Board Showing many Delayed Flights.

Photo: Nuno Andre | Shutterstock

But we know that flights are subject to delays. aircraft maintenance
issues, emergencies, or inclement weather conditions can cause a flight to be delayed. Even when the flight has been delayed, it is advisable that passengers get to the airport early and observe boarding times. In this article, we are going to examine why this is the case.

Understanding why flights are late

Flights run late for a variety of reasons. According to the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA), between 2017 and 2022, 75.48% of delays lasting more than 15 minutes were caused by weather issues. Thirty thousand delays in peak summer months were caused by thunderstorms, while excessive heat, winter weather, hurricanes, and tornadoes were other reasons behind the delays.

Besides the obviousness of delays caused by weather, there are a few

hidden reasons that cause flight delays
:

  • Crew Rest Limitations: Part 117 of the Code of Federal Regulations in the US dictates that a pilot needs a ten-hour rest (comprising eight hours of uninterrupted sleep) between duty on a given day and commencement of duties the next day. If this is not met, the flight will be delayed.
  • Bustling air traffic: In peak seasons, some airports might handle more aircraft than is generally seen, leading to delays.
  • Maintenance issues: Mechanical issues with the aircraft will lead to issuing a Minimum Equipment List (MEL), which can take a lot of time.
sf_passengers-boarding-a-southwest-flight-out-of-las-hdr_jak

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

If there is a flight delay of an hour, many people might have noticed that such a delay is expected to continue more than the initially specified time. One might, therefore, argue that one need not check the boarding times. But that is not the case.

Simon Calder, a travel correspondent for The Independent, reported one of his experiences of how he missed a flight even when he was keeping his eye out on the flight:

” My flight was shown as an hour late. I had been keeping an eye on the departure screen from the lounge. I was alarmed to see it suddenly switch from ‘Go to gate’ to ‘Final call’ and sprinted towards the gate. Unfortunately, at the time there was a weird second security check along the way. That consumed enough precious minutes for me to miss the flight. “

Simon found that getting compensation for the flight was impossible.

Some delays can be un-delayed!

There are some reasons why easyJet
clearly cautions its passengers that they need to arrive at the airport early, despite the fact that their flight could have been delayed:

“Unless we expressly tell you otherwise, closing times do not change if your flight is delayed, and you must still comply with them.”

The biggest reason behind a delay (as we touched upon previously) is weather, and we know that the weather can get better in no time. In such a case, the flight can depart quicker than you anticipated.

transnusa boarding

Photo: Luke Bodell | Simple Flying

There are other reasons why wait times at the airports improve.

  • The expected arrival of an aircraft could be delayed due to weather. In such cases, aircraft fleets can be shuffled. This means that instead of waiting for the delayed aircraft, the airline uses a different plane altogether.
  • Airlines have been allocated certain slots for flying their aircraft. In case the delays are too long, the airlines will ask for new slots to be allocated. If the airlines are allocated new slots, they will be able to fly their aircraft sooner.
Passengers boarding an Air France Airbus.

Photo: pio3 I Shutterstock

Although not all the different types of delays can be un-delayed, some of them can. This is why Simon Calder strongly suggests one stick to the “flight closes” time, as opposed to not arriving early when a delay takes place:

” So always comply with the “flight closes’ time shown on the boarding pass. On most occasions, you will be sitting around impatiently and wishing you had stayed for another coffee or beer. I find that is almost always the case with Ryanair’s tight 25-minute turnarounds. Arriving at the gate half an hour ahead means you will usually get there before the plane has even arrived and disgorged all its passengers from the previous flight.”

When do airlines end boarding passengers?

Different airlines have different policies regarding when boarding ends. According to ThePointsGuy, travelers on AA can expect to board 30–50 minutes before departure, while Delta Air Lines says that one needs to be at the boarding gate 45 minutes ahead of your flight.

The following table shows when the boarding ends for different airlines.

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