As Labor Day weekend comes to an end, millions of travelers are catching flights to head home. CBS News national reporter Karen Hua has the latest from the airport in Houston.

Houston

Airports in the United States saw significant crowds as travelers returned home at the end of the Labor Day weekend. Dallas Fort Worth experienced the highest number of delays, while Houston's George Bush Airport reported smooth operations for departing passengers, though some arrivals faced delays from other cities. 

The Federal Aviation Administration reported that this was the busiest Labor Day weekend in 15 years, with the Transportation Security Administration expecting approximately 17.5 million people to pass through airport checkpoints. For those traveling by car, gas prices were noted to be lower than the previous year.

Millions of travelers hit airports as Labor Day weekend wraps up

Back in the United States the end of Labor Day means airports are packed with those flying back from summer's last goodbye. So let's do this. Let's pull up the flight aware misery map to our monitors right there and that shows you the sheer number of planes that are in the area and then sort of characterizes how airports are dealing with some things. The airport experiencing the most delays so far is Dallas Fort Worth. DFW is where you gotta pack your patience. More than 70 delays there. 13 we're seeing at Houston's George Bush airport and that's where we find CBS News national reporter Karen Watt. Karen, good to have you with us on Labor Day today. Houston is about to receive my friend Alyssa flying back from San Francisco. Tell me about her experience and thousands of others. Is it happy in good old Houston? You know Reed, it actually is happy in good old Houston. It looks pretty calm behind me right now and it's been that way for several hours. We're lucky we're not the ones up in Dallas. We're a little bit further south here in Houston. We talked to flyers who were departing from Houston today and they say they have no trouble so far. Everything's been smooth sailing. The issue is the folks who are coming home to Houston. They say they've experienced long lines and delays at other airports like Denver and in Chicago. So in terms of those who are coming in, your friend may be fine Reed. Okay all right we'll let her know it's going to be smooth sailing there. We have some new numbers from officials. How many people are actually passing through airports this long weekend? Oh yeah it's a it's a record-breaking one. The FAA says that this is the busiest Labor Day weekend in 15 years and at airports across the country TSA expects about 17 and a half million people to pass through their checkpoints. There's good news if you're deciding to drive rather than fly. Gas is 15 cents cheaper this year compared to last Labor Day and in general the national average for gas is $13.19 a gallon. Reed? All right Karen I might be putting you on the spot there but I don't usually see a car in the middle of an airport. What are we looking at? Is that from back to the future? So there's a lot of art at the Houston airport as you can see. It looks like an armadillo on top of a mosaic car. There are also several horse sculptures. All right little art to keep you going if there are delays. Karen it's nice to talk to you here on CBS News 24 7 as always thanks for your excellent work and go tell that armadillo to go to Cinnabon there in the airport.

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