What’s the busiest day to fly over Labor Day weekend?
Days after announcing the fourth highest number of monthly passengers in history in July, Harry Reid International Airport is preparing for an end-of-summer curtain call.
The airport serving Las Vegas is expecting large crowds for the Labor Day weekend, assuring longer-than-usual security lines and shortages of parking-lot spaces in airport parking garages.
But at least one potential Labor Day travel headache appears to have been averted.
Flight attendants for United Airlines, the sixth busiest commercial air carrier at Reid, announced Wednesday that they had approved a strike authorization vote with 99.9 percent affirmative votes.
No Labor Day walkout
The good news for travelers is that by law, flight attendants can’t strike this weekend when millions of travelers hit highways and airports for the last three-day weekend of the summer.
“What we’re hoping for is that the company finally gets serious and starts putting proposals on the table that we would be willing to accept,” said Bill Carico, vice president of United’s Association of Flight Attendants Council 25, which represents Las Vegas-based flight attendants. “Because right now, they haven’t done that.”
Carico indicated that once a strike vote is taken, airline management begins taking the threat of a walk-off seriously and are more eager to bargain.
About 40 flight attendants and their supporters, including pilots with United, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, marched in the midmorning heat at the airport Wednesday, carrying signs that read “Corporate greed doesn’t fly,” “United management No. 1 in operational ego,” “Pay us or chaos,” and “Contract now.”
Nationwide demonstration
The demonstration at Reid was among several by flight attendants across the country on Wednesday.
Because transportation workers are bound by the Railway Labor Act which dictates that workers can’t strike until a contract impasse has been declared and participants wait through a 30-day cooling-off period, passengers flying United Airlines won’t have to worry about a sudden walkout this weekend.
While potential turmoil involving United shouldn’t affect travelers, holiday congestion at the airport could.
A Reid representative said Wednesday that Friday and Monday are expected to be the busiest days at the airport with 108,000 arrivals expected Friday and 107,000 Monday, the legal holiday.
Amanda Mazzagatti said the airport also is anticipating 108,700 departures on Monday.
Mazzagatti said airport parking will be in high demand with Thursday, Friday and Saturday anticipated to be the busiest days.
“As all parking options will be in high demand, we recommend travelers allow more time to find a space and possibly ride a shuttle to their terminal,” Mazzagatti said. “Due to the high travel numbers, they should expect longer wait times at ticket counters, security checkpoints, shuttle bus stops, taxi lines and other services, and allow for ample time to get to their gate.”
Reid on Thursday is issuing an online forecast for airport parking options.
Airport officials are projecting parking to be at capacity Thursday, Friday and Saturday for Terminal 1 long-term and economy lots and the Terminal 3 long-term lot.
The Terminal 3 long-term lot will be near capacity Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The Terminal 1 long-term and economy lots and Terminal 3 economy lot will be near capacity on Sunday.
Spaces are expected to be available at the Terminal 3 long-term lot on Sunday. Spaces also are anticipated to be available every day in the remote lot and in all lots on Monday.
The busy Labor Day weekend comes days after Reid reported around 5.1 million passengers flew in and out of Las Vegas in July.
Once again, the highest numbers were in domestic travel but the highest percentage increase occurred through international travel.
The airport reported 4.7 million domestic passengers, a 2.9 percent increase over July 2023. There also were 290,866 international arrivals and departures, a 0.1 percent bump from last year.
July’s totals bring the seven-month total to 31.3 million passengers, a 1.8 percent increase from a year ago, and 2.1 million international arrivals and departures, 16.1 percent greater than last year.
Southwest Airlines paced domestic travel at Reid with 1.9 million passengers, a 1.6 percent increase over July 2023, bringing the seven-month total to 12.8 million, a 9 percent increase over last year.
On the international side, Canadian discounter WestJet served 66,642 passengers, a 12.7 percent decline from a year ago.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.