HOUSTON — The Houston Airport System said it expected more than 200,000 travelers at Bush Intercontinental and Hobby airports on Monday -- the third-busiest day of the holiday travel season.
Airport officials expect 3.9 million travelers to pass through both Bush and Hobby airports between Dec. 14 and Jan. 3. That’s 6% higher than the same period in 2019 and up 16% from the same time in 2022.
More than 3 million of those passengers are expected to fly in and out of Bush, where United Airlines offered a behind-the-scenes look Monday at how the city’s busiest airline is managing the expected record demand.
Inside Terminal C at IAH, amid the holiday hustle, Leonard Morris was providing passengers calm in the crowds and direction to their destination.
“For me, it’s all about creating an experience,” Morris, a customer service representative with United Airlines, said. “As soon as they come into the building, it’s like our home. So, we’re welcoming them to our home.”
Morris will celebrate 29 years with the company in Houston on Tuesday. While he worked to get guests to their gates, Montrell Hilton did the same for planes.
“You always have a mismatched puzzle every day,” Hilton said. “No day is the same.”
Hilton has spent nearly two years with United as a ramp tower controller. Hilton and his colleagues inside United’s Virtual Ramp Control Tower use cameras to help not only United, but all airlines, move planes to and from all 126 gates at IAH. They also coordinate with cargo carriers and private planes.
“Sometimes, the east ramp and the west ramp have to play Tetris together,” Hilton said.
Hilton said the job also requires constant communication with the Federal Aviation Administration.
“They transfer control to us as we taxi them to the gate when they’re inbounds, and when they’re outbounds we’ll taxi them to a certain spot and then hand it off to the tower,” he said.
While weather, crowds, and unexpected issues like maintenance or medical emergencies can make the holidays hectic, both Hilton and Morris are working to create a smoother experience for the first and last leg of the journey.
“As long as we can get you in the air in time, that works perfectly for us,” Hilton said. “It’s an amazing job.”
“Just be here and be ready to travel, and we’re waiting for you to get here,” Morris said.
United officials expect Friday and Saturday will be its busiest days this holiday season. They’re planning on more than 400 flights a day to be coming and going from Bush airport.