WASHINGTON -- Airlines are predicting a record number of passengers during the Thanksgiving holiday, and federal officials are enacting new flight routes in an attempt to fend off major delays.
The major airlines, coming off the worst summer for delays on record, said Monday that the most popular holiday for travel would see more passengers than ever. An estimated 27 million passengers will fly from Friday through Nov. 27, the 12 days surrounding the Nov. 22 holiday, according to the Air Transport Association (ATA).
That marks a 4% increase over estimates for last year, said ATA, the airline trade group. Aircraft will be 90% full on average -- another record, the association predicted. That means many flights won't have a single empty seat.
When planes are that full, it makes it more difficult for airlines to recover from delays or missed connections. "At 90% load factor, there is very little room for error," ATA President Jim May said.
"I think passengers are well advised to expect delays and to build extra time in," said Greg Principato, president of the Airports Council International.
Airlines plan to add temporary workers during the holiday season to handle the crowds, May said. On the busiest days -- the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and the Sunday and Monday after the holiday -- airlines expect more than 2.5 million travelers a day, a 20% hike above normal levels.
Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration have faced intense criticism this year as delays skyrocketed and a handful of flights were stranded for more than eight hours on the tarmac.
After President Bush intervened in September, the government and airlines have been conducting contentious talks about how to reduce flights at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. The problem has been so bad there -- about 40% of flights are late -- that it obliterated modest gains in efficiency in the rest of the country, according to FAA data.
May said that the FAA is preparing to unveil several measures to improve the flow of planes around New York City for the holiday. The plan was outlined in a conference call Thursday between airlines and government officials, he said.
For instance, the FAA plans to send Philadelphia departures on new routes, which could increase the number of takeoffs, May said. Philadelphia is overseen by the New York air traffic region and suffers from similar delays.
FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown on Monday would not confirm the changes, saying that the agency plans an announcement later this week.
Such changes are part of a controversial plan to reduce delays around New York City. The FAA predicted route changes it approved in September could reduce delays there by 20%. The agency has yet to put any of the new routes into place. They face opposition from local governments and have spawned lawsuits attempting to block them because of noise concerns.
