SeaTac Airport, or the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington State, was in what is apparently its normal state of chaos and disarray each morning.
We flew in to SeaTac late on Sunday and stayed overnight in a hotel before transferring on to our own city in Oregon. We had been up 24 hours, spent 12 hours in the air, and flown on 3 different airlines on 3 different segments to reach Seattle. We were tired, as we expected, and had planned to stay in a nearby hotel (Tru by Hilton – really nice, by the way) and continue our final journey leg on Monday morning.
Monday morning we got up early but the hotel shuttle didn’t run until 7am – but this got us to the airport more than 2 1/2 hours before our flight.
We barely made it to our flight.
First, Delta’s self-check bag drop took over half an hour. Having just been in 6 other airports, bag drop off took a maximum of 3 minutes everywhere else.
Then we had the TSA security lines – which snaked back and forth through the entire terminal. I had pre-check but my wife does not have that. She had to start waiting in line for TSA – and then I tried to find the pre-check line. So we split up and went separate ways.
(I learned later that SeaTac’s TSA security situation is a disaster – apparently every morning. Locals probably know this but those of us from out of town do not know this. This has been a disaster for more than a year and many consider SeaTac Airport to be the worst if not one of the worst airports in the United States. A lesson learned. I have also heard directly from SeaTac that TSA continues to be short staffed, but SeaTac has no ability to influence the TSA on this. TSA makes its own decisions on check point staffing and whether check points are open or closed.)
I asked where the pre-check line was and was told I had to go to “#1” or “#4”. I did not know what #1 or #4 meant. (I learned after the trip that SeaTac has 5 security check points and only 2 of them have pre-check lines – I checked later in the day and only 1 of those was open then.) Not being familiar with the airport, I had no idea what “#1” or “#4” referred to – those directions were useless. When I asked where I was to go, I was told, go out to the front and turn right or left. So I did but I did not know what I was looking for since there was no signage and no directions from staff.
I eventually found another TSA security point and again asked where the pre-check line was – I was very clear what I was asking for – and the staff there pointed to a line 15 feet away and to stand there. I went and waited in that line. Then got to the front of the line and found out this was for Clear (at that time, I didn’t even know what Clear is) and was then told I needed to go back to the end of the now longer pre-check line (the one I had earlier asked about but given wrong information from staff). As I write this, I checked on the online security check point status – of the 5 TSA checkpoints, one is currently closed, and the pre-check is available at only one of the 5. This means you have to walk a long ways to find the only TSA pre-check that is open, clear that, then run across the airport to get to your terminal gate.
The staff person tells me I am not reading the signs – it’s my fault I followed their directions! She’s also right – I am in the midst of a visual aura (ocular migraine) and can’t see half the words in the right of my vision. As someone who has had 6 traumatic brain injuries (1 skull fracture, 5 additional concussions, 2 with other broken bones and broken bike helmets), I suffer from sensory overload too. The chaos is overwhelming to me – and I am in the midst of what would end up being 3 ocular migraines in a row, followed by a conventional migraine (a migraine is not “a headache”). I am basically disabled at this point. But it’s my fault!
I end up in the TSA pre-check line, which ends up snaking all around the terminal, back and forth. At the TSA x-ray machines, a TSA agent is shouting to everyone: “You should know what to do – if you are here you are an experienced traveler”. (Which for those of us who are not, is insulting. How are we supposed to become experienced?[1])
I eventually get through the security line but my wife is still 30 minutes back in the regular TSA line. She eventually gets to our departure gate after flight boarding has already begun. We barely make it.
By the time I am on the plane, my visual auras have turned into a full-blown migraine. After we get home, I go to bed and sleep 15 hours (typical of a migraine).
I was also dealing with foot pain in my left foot – which I would learn months later, was caused by an avulsion fracture and a torn tendon. Loads of fun. Only go through SeaTac if you are in the peak of health!
Things I learned:
- Travel is mostly for the experienced travelers. Airport staff ALL assumed we were familiar with SeaTac airport (even though we lived in Washington for 25 years and used SeaTac a lot in the past, in recent years, the airport has undergone billions of dollars in renovation, remodeling and new terminal construction – it is a completely different airport).
- TSA pre-check is a near requirement, especially if you have any disabilities. Furthermore, Clear ($189/year) provides away to go straight to the head of the line. SeaTac also has a way to reserve a spot in line in advance; don’t know much about that yet. One complication for pre-check is that the nearest interview site for the pre-check application is 100 miles away from where we live.
- SeaTac is a mess. Rather than fix the chaotic failed security lines, they now opt instead for a truly American solution: Rich people can buy Clear memberships and go to the head of the lines. Wonderful!
- SeaTac built a $1 billion international terminal, about 3x over budget, only to find out they made a huge error – and it could cost up to several hundred million to fix.
- I learned that for future travel I need to thoroughly research each airport I will be going to/from/transiting – have a map available and check online resources for security status. Avoid bad times and if necessary, avoid using the airport…
- AND AVOID SEA-TAC AIRPORT. We will not voluntarily choose SeaTac airport for future travel. We have other options through less chaotic airports such as SLC and SFO. I lived in Washington for 27 years and used SeaTac many times in the past – I like the state and hope they can get these issues fixed.
- In the future, we will plan to arrive at large airports 3 to 5 hours in advance of flights (the advice to arrive 2 hours before domestic flights was clearly wrong at SeaTac – we barely made it with a 2 1/2 hour early arrival.
- I do not believe SeaTac has a mechanism in place to assist someone like myself – in the midst of series of visual migraines/migraine, and simultaneously sensory overload – with just 5 hours sleep each of the preceding 2 nights, due to airline schedules – and up 24 hours the day before. (Update – I’ve heard back from a very courteous SeaTac staffer and they do have something they could be of help here – I will look into it.)
On our outbound trip prior to this, we had another unexpected experience. We booked on one airline to fly from city A to C. After booking, we learned that the airline actually flies from A to B, where you then transfer for a flight to C. We checked our bags “through to the destination city C”.
Because the A-B leg is international, upon arrival at B, you have to exit security, go to baggage, get your checked baggage, go through customs, find the bag drop location for your next trip leg to C, re-check in the bag you were told was checked through to the destination when you first checked it in, then go back through security lines, and then run for your gate to get your flight for city C.
Since our flight A-B departed A late, due to a mechanical issue, we arrived late and what was to have been an hour and 45 minute layover became a less than 1 hour run through the airport. We had to run run through the airport, to get to baggage claim, then to the bag drop, then back through security, and then really run to reach the gate, arriving as they announced doors would be closely shortly. We made it. But we were unable to stop at a toilet, unable to get a drink of water even. And our water bottles were empty to get through security.
I am in my 60s and I am dealing with a temporary foot injury – running on that caused me problems for days afterwards, affecting our travel plans. (Update: As of mid 2024, I learned that I had broken a bone in my foot in late 2023, called an avulsion fracture. The tendon attachment was torn and this only partially healed. It was torn again in April of 2023, and then another part of the tendon split in October of 2023. At this point, it never healed properly, was diagnosed by a DPM in spring of 2024 and is now undergoing several months of treatment in mid-2024 including stem cell injections, shockwave therapy and other measures to regenerate the tendon.)
This was new to me – I didn’t know that this airline didn’t really fly to destination C and that our baggage, which was said to be checked through to C, was only checked through to B. This was unexpected. We only barely heard about picking up our luggage via an announcement made as the plane was taxiing in.
I have no idea how I could have learned this in advance or how I could have been better prepared for this. Apparently we were just supposed to know. I asked the airline about this later (they were very cordial) and they said that this is how the international to domestic flight switch is done. I just didn’t know.
I suspect the best thing would have been to be an experienced traveler – and to have traveled when young. I cannot say this enough – DO NOT POSTPONE TRAVEL UNTIL LATE IN LIFE. Do it right now, when you can.
UPDATE – Two weeks later, on June 24th 2023, SeaTac was again in meltdown with security lines stretching out of the terminal into the parking garage. Commenters said it was taking 2 1/2 hours or more to get through TSA security.
Footnote
[1] I signed up for TSA pre-check on March 11, 2020. I had 4 trips booked and 2 ready to book for 2020. Of course, all the trips were canceled and I did not fly again until 2 years later. And the next two times I flew with my “TSA pre-check” was randomly selected for “enhanced screening” so not getting benefit of pre-check nor developing TSA screening experienced to become an “experienced traveler” as the TSA agent shouted at us at SeaTac. My wife does not have pre-check. I have asked her to apply, however, the in-person interview is now available only at locations 100 or more miles away from where we live. (Update – she eventually got pre-check, doing the interview when visiting her Mom, about 500 miles away from us. On her first try, her reserved appointment was canceled by them due to a staff illness. She had to try again several months later and finally got her pre-check interview completed.)