South Bend Airport, TSA offer tips for hassle-free spring break travel

Spring break kicks off this weekend for students at the University of Notre Dame, Saint Mary's College and Holy Cross College, and it isn't far away for other local K-12 and college students either.

In fact, Transportation Security Administration regional spokesperson Jessica Mayle said South Bend International Airport is expecting increased travel volume throughout March and April due to spring break travel.

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Mayle said the airport is already seeing travel numbers that approach or even exceed pre-pandemic levels.

"I can't tell you for sure how the final numbers are going to shake out for this year, but … the general message for people is that you should expect that there are going to be busy crowds," Mayle said at a press event at the airport Wednesday morning.

At the press event, she offered these tips to help travelers navigate the busy spring break travel season hassle free:

Tip 1: Arrive early

Travelers should expect to see the busy airport crowds they were used to seeing before the pandemic, Mayle said. It is important, she said, that travelers give themselves "plenty of time" to account for this increased number of fellow travelers.

At South Bend's airport, Mayle recommends travelers arrive two hours before their flight during the spring break travel period.

"And make sure you're giving yourself plenty of time to consider every step of your travel journey," she said. "You're not just talking about TSA. You need to park your car; you need to check your bag. You want to have a little time to get to your gate and relax and not be in a rush."

Tip 2: Pack smart

Whenever TSA sees an increase in travelers, Mayle said, it also sees an increase in prohibited items ― such as multi-tools, self-defense items, and liquids, gels and aerosols larger than 3.4 ounces ― brought to its checkpoints in travelers' carry-on luggage.

The best way to avoid accidentally bringing a prohibited item to the TSA checkpoint is to begin packing with an empty bag, Mayle said.

"We find people are much less likely to put something in their bag that they're not supposed to have (if they start packing using an empty bag) versus using a half-packed bag from your last trip that maybe has some stuff you didn't even need to bring," she said.

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When TSA stops a traveler with a prohibited item at the checkpoint at a smaller airport like South Bend, it doesn't just slow that traveler down, Mayle said, it slows down everyone in line behind them because smaller airports have few checkpoint lanes.

"So your decisions really impact other passengers, and we just encourage you to pack smart and not bring those prohibited items to the checkpoint," Mayle said.

But passengers don't have to determine alone whether or not they can bring an item to the checkpoint. The TSA website, tsa.gov, has a feature called "What Can I Bring?" where travelers can search for specific items to see if they are allowed in carry-on baggage and if they are subject to any special instructions or regulations.

Tip 3: Obey TSA officers and carry-on size regulations

Over the past few years, the South Bend airport has introduced new technologies to its TSA checkpoints that may make the TSA process look different from what some travelers are used to, especially those who haven't traveled in a while.

Last year, the airport replaced its x-ray scanner with a computer tomography machine, or CT scanner. The CT scanner allows TSA officers to look at a 3-D images of any carry-on bag it scans, allowing officers to stretch, scale and rotate the image to more easily identify items in the bag.

All bags and items must be placed in a bin before entering the CT scanner and must comply with airline carry-on size restrictions.

"If you try and bring an oversized bag through, our new CT scanner will not accept it," Mayle said. "So don't try and bring a really big bag and hope that you can just kind of make it work as a carry-on. If it's not a standard carry-on size, they're going to send you back to check it."

In addition to the CT scanner, the airport recently introduced a credential authentication technology machine. This machine scans travelers' IDs and can tell TSA officers whether a person is scheduled to travel that day without the person needing to present their boarding pass.

Mayle said that when it comes to navigating these new technologies, it is important to pay attention to TSA officers' instructions.

"They're going to tell you what to do in terms of how to put items in your bin, whether or not you need to show a boarding pass and things like that," she said. "You won't have the same experience at every airport because the technology is not the same at every airport, but if you listen to the officers, they can really help you get through that process."

TSA is 'always hiring' to keep up with travel demand

Like most sectors of the travel industry, Mayle said, TSA has "certainly had (its) challenges" when it comes to worker shortages and hiring.

"We're always hiring …," she said. "This definitely is not a job where we can hire you in one or two days because we need you, so we're definitely looking at future needs and future forecasts when we are hiring."

Interested applicants can visit jobs.tsa.gov to explore potential career opportunities, Mayle continued.

Help wanted:South Bend airport holds job fair Feb. 15

Despite hiring challenges, Mayle said, TSA has lots of strategies in place to deal with short-term passenger increases like that expected over the next two months. These strategies include bringing in officers from other airports, using K9 teams and converting existing part-time officer positions to full-time positions.

"We do have a lot of strategies to make sure we're prepared. … But, we can have all the staffers in the world back there, but the passenger plays such a big role in being prepared for the checkpoint experience," Mayle said. "That's really the message we want to get across. Take personal responsibility. Do your part. Don't slow yourself or everyone else down. It makes our jobs easier."

Email Tribune staff writer Claire Reid at cereid@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: TSA, South Bend airport offer tips on how to pack and security concerns