About to happen with 要…了 — Chinese grammar (HSK 2)

Subject + (快)要 + Verb + 了

要 + verb + 了 means something is about to happen very soon, like "is about to / is going to". The 了 here is not about the past; it signals a change that is coming. Adding 快 (快要…了) makes it even more imminent.

Examples

飞机快要到了。 Fēijī kuài yào dào le.	The plane is about to arrive.
我要回家了。 Wǒ yào huí jiā le.	I am about to go home.
考试要开始了。 Kǎoshì yào kāishǐ le.	The exam is about to start.

Tip: Without 了, 我要回家 just means "I want to go home"; the 了 is what makes it "about to".