Busiest holiday travel season in years is off to a smooth start
Few airport delays reported
NEW YORK — The holiday travel rush hit its peak Friday as mild weather and lower flight cancellation rates raised hopes for merrier drivers and airline passengers than last year.
U.S. airlines are predicting a blockbuster holiday season and have projected confidence they can handle the crowds after hiring thousands of pilots, flight attendants and other workers, seeking to avoid the delays and suspensions that marred travel last year and culminated with the Southwest Airline debacle that stranded more than 2 million people.
Airlines have canceled just 1.2% of U.S. flights so far this year, the lowest in five years, but bad weather is always a threat. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has warned the government will be holding the airlines accountable to operate smoothly and treat passengers well if there are disruptions. Earlier this week, the Transportation Department announced a settlement in which Southwest would pay $140 million for its meltdown last year.
Fewer than 50 flights were canceled in the U.S. by mid-Friday, and about 1,200 were delayed, according to FlightAware.
The Transportation Security Administration screened more than 2.6 million passengers on Thursday, which had been projected to be one of the busiest travel days, along with Friday and New Year’s Day. That’s short of the record 2.9 million that agents screened on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, since travel tends to be more spread over Christmas and New Year’s.
Travel has been strong this year — surpassing prepandemic levels — even though many Americans say they are worried about the economy. The TSA has already screened 12.3% more travelers than it had by this time last year and 1.4% more than in 2019.
Robert Lake said he hoped taking a pre-dawn flight from Atlanta International Airport would help him beat the crowds Friday but found the world’s busiest airport was already packed in the wee hours.
“It was very hectic. I got to my boarding area, like, maybe just minutes before the plane took off,” Mr. Lake said after arriving in Tampa to go to a cruise for the holidays. “I cut it way too close.”
Other travelers said they were pleasantly surprised at the ease of their trips despite the crowds.
“Super easy. We had a great flight. No issues so far,” said Kendall Black, who flew from Houston to Chicago O’Hare International Airport with her spouse and 3- year- old daughter to visit her sister.
Auto club AAA forecasts that 115 million people in the U.S. will go 50 miles or more from home between Saturday and New Year’s Day. That’s up 2% over last year. The busiest days on the road will be Saturday and next Thursday, Dec. 28, according to transportation data provider INRIX.