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These are the busiest days for Christmas and New Year's travel
Zach Wichter
Aviation Industry Reporter
Zach has been interested in things that go since he was a kid. He previously worked at The New York Times and spent much of his time there covering the aviation industry, including contributing to the paper’s reporting on the 737 Max crisis at Boeing. He grew up in Bethpage, on Long Island, and graduated from Northwestern University in 2013 where he majored in journalism and gender and sexuality studies.
Dec. 10, 2019
•
2 min read
These are the busiest days for Christmas and New Year's travel
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If you're flying for the winter holidays, you're far from alone.
The 18 days between Dec. 19 and Jan. 5 will be the busiest end-of-year holiday season ever for air travel, predicts industry trade organization Airlines for America.
On average, 2.6 million people will fly on each of those days, peaking around 3 million on Dec. 20, 21, 26 and 27. All told, about 47.5 million passengers will take to the skies in in the days around Christmas and New Year's day.
Related: The best credit cards for airline lounge access
"Throughout this year we've seen steady gains in air travel demand, and this winter will be no exception" John Heimlich, vice president and chief economist for Airlines for America said in a statement. "Buoyed by a healthy economy and plentiful, affordable air service, travelers once again are expected to take to the skies in record numbers."
The record-breaking winter holiday season comes on the heels of a similarly busy Thanksgiving travel period.
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The Transportation Security Administration screened more than 26 million passengers and crew members were screened around Thanksgiving, according to A4A.
Busiest days
- Friday, Dec. 20
- Saturday, Dec. 21
- Friday, Dec. 27
- Thursday, Dec. 26
Lightest days
- Tuesday, Dec. 24
- Tuesday, Dec. 31
- Wednesday, Dec. 25
Featured image by NurPhoto via Getty Images
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