Airports and highways are expected to be jam-packed week, a holiday period likely to end with for air travel in the United States.
AAA predicts that nearly 80 million Americans will between Tuesday and next Monday, most of them by car. However, travelers could be impacted by ongoing weather challenges and those flying to their destinations could be grounded by delays brought on by airline staffing shortages and .
Here's the latest:
2.2 billion packages are expected to ship between Thanksgiving and New Year鈥檚 Eve
U.S. airlines are preparing for a Thanksgiving holiday rush, and so are the U.S. Postal Service, United Parcel Service and FedEx.
Shipping companies will deliver about 2.2 billion packages to homes and businesses across the U.S. from Thanksgiving to Dec. 31, said Satish Jindel, a shipping and logistics expert and president of ShipMatrix.
That鈥檚 down from 2.3 billion packages last year. Because the shopping period is a week shorter than in 2023, consumers are shopping further ahead of Black Friday and more purchases are taking place in physical stores, he said.
The number of holiday package shipments grew 27% in 2020 and by more than 3% the following year during the pandemic. The numbers have been falling since then, with a projected decline of about 6% this holiday season.
Does your airport offer therapy dogs?
Looking to de-stress while waiting for your flight? Many airports have a fleet of 鈥� designated fidos and puppers that are eager to receive pets and snuggles from weary travelers.
Rules and schedules vary from airport to airport, but the group uses online crowdsourcing to share the locations of therapy dogs across its various social media accounts.
Today, Gracie, a toy Australian shepherd, and Budge, an English bulldog, wandered the concourses at Denver International Airport, and an American Staffordshire Terrier named Hugo greeted travelers at Punta Gorda Airport in Florida.
Some airports even feature other therapy pals.
includes a Flemish Giant rabbit and a hypoallergenic pig.
What the striking airport workers are saying
鈥淲e cannot live on the wages that we are being paid,鈥� ABM cabin cleaner Priscilla Hoyle said at a rally earlier Monday. 鈥淚 can honestly say it鈥檚 hard every single day with my children, working a full-time job but having to look my kids in the eyes and sit there and say, 鈥業 don鈥檛 know if we鈥檙e going to have a home today.鈥欌��
Timothy Lowe II, a wheelchair attendant, said he has to figure out where to spend the night because he doesn鈥檛 make enough for a deposit on a home.
鈥淲e just want to be able to have everything that鈥檚 a necessity paid for by the job that hired us to do a great job so they can make billions,鈥� he said.
ABM said it is 鈥渃ommitted to addressing concerns swiftly鈥� and that there are avenues for employees to communicate issues, including a national hotline and a 鈥済eneral open door policy for managers at our worksite.鈥�
What are striking Charlotte airport workers鈥� demands?
Employees of ABM and Prospect Airport Services cast ballots Friday to authorize the work stoppage at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, a hub for American Airlines. They described living paycheck to paycheck while performing jobs that keep planes running on schedule.
Most of them earn $12.50 to $19 an hour, union officials said. Rev. Glencie Rhedrick of Charlotte Clergy Coalition for Justice said those workers should make $22 to $25 an hour.
The strike is expected to last 24 hours. Several hundred workers participated in the work stoppage.
US flights are running normally
Forty-four fights have been canceled today and nearly 1,900 were delayed by midday on the East Coast, .
According to the organization鈥檚 cheekily named , San Francisco International Airport is having the most hiccups right now, with 53 delays and three cancellations between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. EST.
While that might sound like a lot of delays, they might not be so bad compared to last Friday when the airport suffered 671 delays and 69 cancellations.
Cutting in line? American Airlines鈥� new boarding tech might stop you now at over 100 airports
In an apparent effort to reduce the headaches caused by airport line cutting, has rolled out boarding technology that alerts gate agents with an audible sound if a passenger tries to scan a ticket ahead of their assigned group.
This new software won鈥檛 accept a boarding pass before the group it鈥檚 assigned to is called, so customers who get to the gate prematurely will be asked to go back and wait their turn.
As of Wednesday, the airline announced, the technology is now being used in more than 100 U.S. airports that American flies out of. The official expansion arrives after successful 鈥� Albuquerque International Sunport, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Tucson International Airport.
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Tips to make holiday travel a bit easier
in the best of times. Now add in the high-level anxiety that seems to be baked into every and it鈥檚 clear travelers could use some help calming frazzled nerves.
Here are a few ways to make your holiday journey a little less stressful:
1. Make a checklist of what you need to do and what you need to bring
2. Carry your comfort with you 鈥� think noise-canceling headphones, cozy clothes, snacks and extra medication
3. Stay hydrated
4. Keep up to date on delays, gate changes and cancellations with your airline鈥檚 app
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The timing of this year鈥檚 holiday shapes travel patterns
Thanksgiving Day takes place late this year, with the fourth Thursday of November falling on Nov. 28. That shortens the traditional shopping season and changes the rhythm of holiday travel.
With more time before , people tend to spread out their outbound travel over more days, but everyone returns at the same time, said Andrew Watterson, the chief operating officer of .
鈥淎 late Thanksgiving leads to a big crush at the end,鈥� Watterson said. 鈥淭he Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday after Thanksgiving are usually very busy with Thanksgiving this late.鈥�
Airlines did a relatively good job of handling holiday crowds last year, when the weather was mild in most of the country. Fewer than 400 U.S. flights were canceled during Thanksgiving week in 2023 鈥� about one out of every 450 flights. So far in 2024, airlines have canceled about 1.3% of all flights.
Advice for drivers
Drivers should know that Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons will be the worst times to travel by car, but it should be smooth sailing on freeways come Thanksgiving Day, according to transportation analytics company INRIX.
On the return home, the best travel times for motorists are before 1 p.m. on Sunday, and before 8 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on Monday, the company said.
In metropolitan areas like Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle and Washington, 鈥渢raffic is expected to be more than double what it typically is on a normal day,鈥� INRIX transportation analyst Bob Pishue said.
FAA staffing shortage could cause flight delays
Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Mike Whitaker said last week that he expects his agency to use special measures at some facilities to deal with an ongoing shortage of air traffic controllers.
In the past, those facilities have included and Florida.
鈥淚f we are short on staff, we will slow traffic as needed to keep the system safe,鈥� Whitaker said.
The FAA has long struggled with a shortage of controllers that airline officials expect will last for years, despite the agency鈥檚 lofty hiring goals.
Thanksgiving travel, b
y the numbers
5. Auto club and insurance company AAA predicts that nearly 80 million Americans will venture at least 50 miles from home between Tuesday and next Monday. Most of them will travel by car.
6. Drivers should get a slight break on . The nationwide average price for gasoline was $3.06 a gallon on Sunday, down from $3.27 at this time last year.
7. The Transportation Security Administration expects 18.3 million people at U.S. airports during the same seven-day stretch. That would be 6% more than during the corresponding days last year but fit a pattern set throughout 2024.
8. The TSA predicts that 3 million people will pass through checkpoints on Sunday; more than that could break the record of 3.01 million set on the Sunday after the July Fourth holiday. Tuesday and Wednesday are expected to be the next busiest air travel days of Thanksgiving week.
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Charlotte airport workers strike over low wages
Workers who clean airplanes, remove trash and help with wheelchairs at Charlotte鈥檚 airport, one of the nation鈥檚 busiest, went on strike Monday to demand higher wages.
The Service Employees International Union announced the strike in a statement early Monday, saying the workers would demand 鈥渁n end to poverty wages and respect on the job during the holiday travel season.鈥� The strike was expected to last 24 hours, said union spokesperson Sean Keady.
Employees of ABM and Prospect Airport Services to authorize the work stoppage at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, a hub for American Airlines. The two companies contract with American, one of the world鈥檚 biggest carriers, to provide services such as cleaning airplane interiors, removing trash and escorting passengers in wheelchairs.
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Northeast should get needed precipitation
Parts of the Midwest and East Coast can expect to see heavy rain into Thanksgiving, and there鈥檚 potential for snow in Northeastern states.
A storm last week brought rain to New York and New Jersey, where wildfires have raged in recent weeks, and heavy snow to northeastern Pennsylvania. The precipitation was expected to help ease after an exceptionally dry fall.
in northeastern Pennsylvania, including the Pocono Mountains. Higher elevations reported up to 17 inches (43 centimeters), with lesser accumulations in valley cities including Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. Around 35,000 customers in 10 counties were still without power, down from 80,000 a day ago.
In the Catskills region of New York, nearly 10,000 people remained without power Sunday morning, two days after a storm dumped heavy snow on parts of the region.
Precipitation in West Virginia helped put a dent in the state鈥檚 worst drought in at least two decades and boosted ski resorts as they prepare to open in the weeks ahead.
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More rain expected after deadly 鈥榖omb cyclone鈥� on West Coast
Two people died after a rapidly intensifying 鈥� 鈥� hit the West Coast last Tuesday, bringing that toppled trees and power lines and damaged homes and cars. Hundreds of thousands lost electricity in Washington state before powerful gusts and record rains moved into Northern California.
Forecasters said the risk of flooding and mudslides remained as the region will get more rain starting Sunday. But the latest storm won鈥檛 be as intense as last week鈥檚 , a long plume of moisture that forms over an ocean and flows over land.
鈥淗owever, there鈥檚 still threats, smaller threats, and not as significant in terms of magnitude, that are still going to exist across the West Coast for the next two or three days,鈥� weather service forecaster Rich Otto said.
As the rain moves east throughout the week, Otto said, there鈥檚 a potential for heavy snowfall at higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada, as well as portions of Utah and Colorado.
California鈥檚 Mammoth Mountain, which received 2 feet (0.6 meters) of fresh snow in the recent storm, could get another 4 feet (1.2 meters) before the newest system clears out Wednesday, the resort said.
Forecasts warn of possible winter storms across US during Thanksgiving week
Another round of wintry weather could complicate travel leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday, according to forecasts across the U.S., while California and Washington state continue to recover from storm damage and power outages.
In California, where two people were found dead in floodwaters on Saturday, authorities braced for more rain while grappling with flooding and small landslides from a .
Here鈥檚 a look at some of the regional forecasts:
9. Sierra Nevada: The National Weather Service office issued a winter storm warning through Tuesday, with heavy snow expected at higher elevations and wind gusts potentially reaching 55 mph (88 kph). Total snowfall of roughly 4 feet (1.2 meters) was forecast, with the heaviest accumulations expected Monday and Tuesday.
10. Midwest and Great Lakes: The Midwest and Great Lakes regions will see rain and snow Monday and the East Coast will be the most impacted on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, forecasters said.
11. East Coast: A low pressure system is forecast to bring rain to the Southeast early Thursday before heading to the Northeast. Areas from Boston to New York could see rain and breezy conditions, with snowfall possible in parts of northern New Hampshire, northern Maine and the Adirondacks. If the system tracks further inland, there could be less snow and more rain in the mountains, forecasters said.
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The Associated Press
