The security delay is known
Rob Gibson – May 9, 2022 / 3:43 p.m. | History: 368457
Photo: Contributed
Some passengers missed their flights at Kelowna International Airport on Monday morning after one of the X-ray machines during the security check broke down.
Philip Elchitz, senior manager of operations at Kelowna Airport, says they usually have four security lines during the morning rush hour, which allows them to handle 500 passengers per hour.
YLW’s capacity was reduced by 25 percent on Monday morning, “as a result we saw very long queues.”
Monday morning is usually one of the busiest days for YLW flights with 12 flights, which must depart between 8 and 10 am
“The combination of the heavy loads and the piece of equipment that was unusable led to longer queues than we are comfortable with,” Elchitz said.
YLW has ordered a part for the X-ray machine from Vancouver and Elchitz is confident that the repairs will be done before Tuesday morning, “we need to have this extra line back and work for the peak tomorrow morning.”
To alleviate the security crisis on Monday, some passengers were pulled ahead in an attempt to help them catch their flights.
“We looked at which flights were boarding and crossed the line. And we pulled these people forward who would be late for these flights. It was very useful. But unfortunately some people still missed their flights,” Elchitz said.
YLW shows how long it takes to check the security of its website for departure, but Elchitz says this is another example of why it’s important to arrive two hours before your departure.
“Sometimes there are queues at check-in, and sometimes there are queues at security checkpoints. So arriving early is the best way to make sure you succeed on your flight.
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