U.S. Airlines to Transport Record Travelers Over Thanksgiving Holiday

Airlines for America (A4A) projects that U.S. airlines will see record air travel this holiday season and expects more than 31 million passengers to fly on U.S. carriers over the Thanksgiving holiday travel period – an all-time high.

This is up from the nearly 29 million passengers seen during the same time last year and 28 million seen pre-pandemic in 2019.

U.S. carriers are preparing to fly an average of 2.8 million passengers per day—up 5 percent from last year—over the Thanksgiving holiday period. To meet this demand, U.S. airlines are offering 150,000 more seats each day than they did during the 2023 Thanksgiving holiday period.

A4A expects the busiest days to fly during the Thanksgiving travel period (Nov. 22 through Dec. 2), will be Wednesday, Nov. 27 and Sunday, Dec. 1 – with more than 3 million passengers expected on each day respectively.

“We expect this Thanksgiving season to be the busiest on record, and U.S. airlines have been preparing for months to get travelers and cargo safely and efficiently to their destinations,” said Rebecca Spicer, A4A’s senior vice president of communications. “We are especially grateful for the more than 1 million airline employees who work to transport millions of passengers and thousands of tons of cargo around the globe safely every day.”

A4A carriers have made significant investments in technology to make sure passengers can stay up to date on flight announcements, baggage tracking, in-flight entertainment and more. A4A’s cargo carriers also offer various tracking technologies to ensure your packages make it home in time for the holidays. We encourage travelers to take advantage of these technologies and download their carrier’s app as soon as they purchase a ticket or ship a package.

Ahead of the busy holiday season, travelers are encouraged to obtain a REAL ID. Starting May 7, 2025, all air travel passengers will be required to have a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or another acceptable form of identification to fly within the United States. To learn more about how to obtain a REAL ID, click here.