TENS of thousands of families are getting ready to fly out of Glasgow for the annual October getaway and dozens of staff are standing by to help them through check-in.

More than 115,000 people will pass through the airport between tomorrow and Monday as schools shut down for a week.

The exodus will see families heading to a number of favourite hotspots.

Florida and Dubai are the two most popular long-haul destinations while other top sunspots include the Canary Islands and Tunisia in North Africa.

The start of the October holiday week is one of the busiest of the year at the airport and a number of airlines are laying on extra flights to cope with demand.

Thomas Cook, Thomson Airways, Virgin Atlantic, easyJet and Jet2.com are all gearing up for a hectic weekend, which will be repeated at the end of next week when families all fly back to Glasgow.

Airport bosses say dozens of extra staff will be manning the terminal building to help passengers through check-in, especially those parents with young children.

The hub's commercial director, Francois Bourienne, said: "The October holiday week is always a busy time of year at the airport, with families using the school holidays to enjoy some time in the sun before the winter sets in.

"A number of our airline partners are adding extra flights over the course of the week to accommodate increased demand from passengers.

"The atmosphere in the terminal is always fantastic in the lead up to and during the October holiday week and we will have more staff on duty to ensure our passengers enjoy a smooth journey through the airport."

Glasgow Airport has experienced almost two years of continuous passenger growth. Just weeks ago bosses announced their busiest summer in six years, when nearly 2.5million passengers used the hub, with numbers boosted by the Commonwealth Games, Ryder Cup and the World Pipe Band Championships.

And the steady growth looks set to continue. Ryanair launches out of Glasgow next week and is expected to generate at least 850,000 extra passengers every year thanks to 55 weekly return flights to various destinations, including London and Poland.

Canadian airline WestJet is also introducing daily flights to Halifax, Nova Scotia, next summer, with Virgin Atlantic also planning extra flights to Orlando.

Sir Richard Branson's airline is predicting the expanded service will see an additional 3500 holidaymakers fly out of Glasgow.

gordon.thomson@ eveningtimes.co.uk