Long Lines, No Place to Wait: Hilton Head Airport Had 5 Times More Traffic Last Weekend

June 8, 2021

Jun. 7—Weekend travelers at Hilton Head Island's airport have been greeted by long lines and delays in recent weeks as the three-gate terminal tries to handle a roaring return to air travel.

The number of visitors at the north-end airport is up five times from four months ago, according to Beaufort County Airports Director Jon Rembold. Although summer traffic is normally busy on Hilton Head, the increase blew expectations out of the water.

He attributes the boost to pent-up demand from newly vaccinated travelers and new flights at the airport.

Last weekend, 25 flights left from the airport on Saturday; 21 left on Sunday. The airport now connects the island to 16 different cities with nonstop flights.

With the new opportunities for travel come long lines, which in recent weeks passengers reported stretching outside, and frustration at the security process, which is unable to accommodate passengers from more than one flight at a time, Rembold said.

The crowds represent a significant departure from the lackluster year at the airport in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic caused air travel to plummet.

Perhaps more significant are the noticeable changes for island residents, who have scorned the airport for its growth, and for longtime airport users, who have counted on the small airport to provide smooth connections to other cities.

"Gone are the days when you can arrive 30 or 45 minutes before your flight and make it," Rembold said. "Today, you won't."

About the airport terminal expansion

Rembold said over 2,400 people went through the security checkpoint at the airport on Saturday, June 5 and Sunday, June 6.

That's up from the 1,630 who went through on the final weekend of April.

Both numbers are increases over the average weekend of travel in 2019 before the pandemic.

"The biggest issue is that there are not huge boarding areas," Rembold said. "There's limited space for people to wait, so we can't screen for more than one flight at a time."

A solution to that problem is coming, albeit slowly.

The airport submitted plans last year to the Town of Hilton Head Island for a larger terminal. Although preliminary, the plans show more parking, an expanded Transportation Security Administration security checkpoint, updated baggage collection areas and more space in the north island airport.

The plan adds 43,000 square feet to the 18,500 square-foot building, about half of which is a holding room for passengers waiting to board. The other half includes a new grand hall and a four-lane passenger drop‐off and pick-up area.

The expansion is projected to cost $37.5 million, and $20 million of that is coming from a Federal Aviation Administration grant, according to Rembold.

He said the airport hopes to break ground within the next year, which provides little relief to travelers this summer.

More immediately, Rembold said he's coordinating with town officials and leaders at the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce to make the entrance to the island more hospitable.

He said the airport is also working with the airlines and TSA to implement new software that can notify travelers when their flight is eligible for security screening.

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