Name: Nearly 18 million people expected to fly for Thanksgiving
Uploaded: 2025-11-24T14:37:20.775Z
Duration: 3 min
Description: Nearly 18 million people are projected to fly between Nov. 25 and Dec. 2 for Thanksgiving travel, according to the TSA. Meanwhile, the FAA predicts it will be the busiest Thanksgiving in terms of scheduled flights in the last 15 years. Kris Van Cleave has the latest.

Nearly 18 million people are projected to fly between Nov. 25 and Dec. 2 for Thanksgiving travel, according to the TSA. Meanwhile, the FAA predicts it will be the busiest Thanksgiving in terms of scheduled flights in the last 15 years. Kris Van Cleave has the latest.

Newark Liberty International Airport

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is preparing to screen nearly 18 million passengers over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, marking one of the busiest travel periods in recent years. Airlines expect to fly a record 31 million people, while AAA projects over 73 million will travel by road. 

Despite a few disruptions, such as a 90-minute internet outage at JFK Airport and weather-related cancellations in Texas, most travelers have experienced minimal delays so far. Authorities are monitoring ongoing storms that could impact travel in several regions, and investments are being made to upgrade airport security checkpoints.

Nearly 18 million people expected to fly for Thanksgiving

We are going to begin though with a very busy week ahead for millions of Americans all rushing to get out for Thanksgiving that TSA expects to screen. Nearly 18 million people through the holiday weekend. The Sunday after Thanksgiving could be one of the busiest. I know you've heard it before, but the busiest travel days in TSA history. There have been already some. There have already been some issues, including at New York's JFK Airport. A system outage stopped check ins at one terminal for more than an hour. Chris Van Cleve is keeping track of the issues at Newark Liberty Airport. Chris, good morning. Tell us some good news. Well, good morning. Here is the good news. Cancellations remained very low over the weekend, so the vast majority of flyers got where they were hoping to go. Now that's good. The FAA expects this to be the busiest Thanksgiving in terms of scheduled flights in at least 15 years. Now here's the bad news. We're already seeing cancellations and disruptions because of a storm system that is moving across the country and could impact millions trying to get where they're going. Thanksgiving travel troubles at New York's JFK Airport Sunday, a roughly 90 minute Internet outage paused check ins at the usually busy Terminal 4 home to Delta and a number of international carriers in Las Vegas. It wasn't just the race to Thanksgiving that had the airport buzzing fans were also rushing to Sin City for the annual F1 race. I had an early flight, so it's one of the first ones, so I didn't have any problems there. Airport Security Secretary Christy Noem used the busy weekend to hand out bonus checks to some TSA officers who worked during the entire government shutdown and announce a billion dollar investment. Upgrading airport security checkpoints. We know that it is our responsibility, not just to keep travelers safe, but also to make sure that we're getting them to their locations and to their destinations safely on time and efficiently. The nation's airlines expect to fly a record 31 million people during the holiday rush. Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle. What do you see for the holidays in particular? I think the holidays are going to continue to be robust. I mean, we're seeing more and more. The holidays are a big deal. Some flyers may have opted to drive because of the uncertainty at airports during the shutdown. The Murcas weren't sure what to expect. I was very nervous about it. I didn't want to go, but everyone else did so we came and it was good. Whatever changed, I'm glad because this was very different than last month. Triple A expects more than 73 million to hit the road up a bit from last year, but as storms make their way to the eastern part of the US, drivers may run into delays and messy conditions. Those messy conditions, particularly in the Dallas area right now where we have seen dozens of flights canceled already. As those thunderstorms move through Texas, the FAA is also watching weather conditions in San Francisco and the potential for a hurricane. Delays here at Newark, Tony Chris. We're watching them as well. Thank you very much.

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