Tri-Cities Airport expects busy July for travel

BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) – The Tri-Cities Airport (TRI) is bracing for one of its busiest times of the year.

TRI Marketing and Air Service Development Manager Trevor Rice told News Channel 11 on Monday that July sees a sharp rise in travel.

“It’s one of our busiest months of the year,” Rice said. “And when you add the 4th of July holiday, it adds to that. So really, we just encourage passengers to show up early, around two hours before their scheduled departure time, and just make sure to check your airline apps and their websites to make sure that your flight status is on time and you can sort of plan your travel accordingly.”

Rice emphasized arriving early ahead of summertime flights, especially those in the days leading up to the 4th of July.

“We typically tend to see passengers or passenger counts higher the days leading up before 4th of July and then also the days after that, so around Saturday and Sunday,” Rice said.

While the airport is expecting higher volumes of passengers, Rice said people hoping to fly out of TRI should have any problems finding seats.

“There shouldn’t be any issues with people finding seats available,” he said. “July is actually the second busiest month for us throughout the year, second to October. So as far as capacity, we have around 27,000 seats in the market. So there should be plenty of availability for people that are looking to make those last-minute travel plans.” 

Rice also encouraged travelers to check the TSA website before arriving at the airport to make sure they have packed accordingly and will have an easier time getting through security.