Delta recommends flyers get to MSP 3 hours before flight during busy hours

At least one major airline is warning passengers taking off during busy airport hours to be there three hours ahead of their flight.

Labor Day Weekend is seen as the last hurrah for big travel plans before we say goodbye to summer. It’s busy for airports too – which is why Delta tells us they’re advising passengers to give themselves a good cushion, partly because of Terminal 1 construction and partly because summer is their busiest season.

The cushion is more important than ever at MSP Airport, where security lines can really stretch.

"It's longer than normal, let’s just say that," says passenger Sharon Nigro.

It’s the start of a long holiday weekend in the middle of airport construction.

"This week, we have had some lines over half an hour, but it’s been rare and for a short period of time," says John Welbes of the Metropolitan Airports Commission.

The Terminal 1 ticket lobby is being remodeled – which has meant most passengers are only using the North Security Checkpoint – only precheck and airport employees are allowed at the south checkpoint.

"We have had some complaints and we’ve been responsive to those and we feel that this week we did change things up and they’re going better," said John Welbes of the Metropolitan Airports Commission. 

Those changes have included more staff in the lobby to guide passengers, TSA staffing up earlier in the morning and adjustments to how security lines are set up.

"I told her it moves fast, but we’ll see when we get up here," says Nigro.

The airport is expecting things to get better with summer winding down.

"When we’re all done with the construction, you’ll see a noticeable change in Terminal 1," explains Welbes. "More square footage, eventually a larger south point checkpoint, more capacity and there is a light at the end of the tunnel."

The airport also tells us Labor Day Weekend actually isn't even their busiest time of the summer. The first two weeks of August earn that title as people get those last summer trips in.