Airlines routinely warn passengers to leave plenty of time for check in and security clearance, suggesting at least an hour prior to departure for domestic flights and two or three for international ones. But in unusual circumstances, that may not be enough. Airlines do not routinely warn passengers of potential logjams, but a good travel agent will advise you that the lines are unusually long, for example, at Miami International on a Saturday morning when cruise ships disgorge their passengers all at once.

Next time: It's always a good idea to give yourself plenty of extra time checking into a strange airport: bring a good paperback to read if you discover you have time to kill at the gate, and just relax. Get your boarding pass online before arriving at the airport or use automated check in kiosks to avoid the check in line. You can also check security checkpoint wait times online at http://waittime.tsa.dhs.gov/index.html, although these are just estimates and averages, not “live” data. Many airlines, such as Delta and United, also estimate check in line and security line wait times on their sites, and US Airways warns on its site that passengers must check their luggage 45 minutes prior to departure for domestic flights and an hour before international departure when using Philadelphia International