Hurry up and wait

From the Palm Beach Post-

FORT LAUDERDALE — Passengers flying out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport next week should expect significant delays because of a runway closure to make drainage improvements. The south runway will be closed from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday. During these times, the majority of the airport's 900 daily departure and arrivals will be made on the north runway. The crosswind runway may also be used to relieve backups. Airport spokesman Greg Meyer said he couldn't estimate the length of the delays, but passengers should arrive early to avoid problems.

I understand why airline passengers should arrive early. In my pre-9/11 travel days I used to get to the airport 60-90 minutes ahead of time and because of my frequent flyer status, always got in the short line.

FLL is going to have runway work, and this will cause delays. I understand that, but why should passengers get to the airport any earlier? Just in order to stand around and pay for overpriced food and drinks? The planes will be delayed departing, but it shouldn't interfere with check-in.

Trust me I flew over 400,000 flight miles between 1996 and 2002.

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