Hartsfield-Jackson Copes With Thanksgiving Travelers
By Jim Tharpe, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nov. 20–Plan ahead. Arrive early. Expect crowds.
That’s the advice from officials at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport — the world’s busiest — where things will be even busier this Thanksgiving holiday rush than a year ago.
Airport officials say projections indicate about 4.6 percent more fliers will pass through the Atlanta airport over the next week or so than they did in the same period in 2006. About 1.85 million passengers will travel through the airport this holiday period.
Among those crowding the concourses this year: “Today” co-host Meredith Viera, who broadcast live this morning from Hartsfield-Jackson, doing half a dozen segments from the airport.
The Hartsfield-Jackson rush began Tuesday. It builds through Wednesday, subsides somewhat on Thanksgiving Day and then picks back up for a concourse-packed finale Sunday and Monday, when returning holiday travelers cross paths with road warriors taking off for business appointments.
Tuesday morning was smooth sailing for travelers — planes were on time and security waits were about 10 minutes.
“I took MARTA to the airport, so I did have any traffic problems,” said Sue Bulfin, who was traveling to Fort Lauderdale. “Look at these lines — there is nobody here yet.”
Lines at Delta ticketing were sparse at 11 a.m. but slowly building.
“It’s been busy in little spurts all morning, but we haven’t had any problems so far,” said Delta customer service agent Danielle Dixon. “Tomorrow will be another story, but we’re ready for it.”
A big-screen weather map told part of the story early Tuesday: clear skies across the nation.
“Wednesday will probably be the heaviest traffic day this week, with next Monday topping even that,” said Hartsfield-Jackson spokesman Herschel Grangent.
Normally, about 240,000 passenger a day travel through the airport. The average will increase to about 265,000 a day during the holidays. About 295,000 will move through the airport Tuesday, 290,000 Wednesday, 173,000 Thursday, 196,000 Friday and 271,000 Saturday. The numbers jump to 324,000 on Sunday and 306,000 on Monday.
Planes are expected to be about 90 percent full throughout the holiday period, when some 27 million people across the nation take to the skies.
Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines and Orlando-based AirTran Airways, both of which have their biggest hubs at Hartsfield-Jackson, have added workers to cope with crowds. Transportation Security Administration officials say they will keep all security checkpoints fully staffed during the heaviest traffic times in an attempt top minimize wait times.
“It’s an all-hands-on-deck situation,” said Atlanta-based TSA spokesman Jon Allen.
The TSA, which has come under recent criticism for non-holiday delays at Hartsfield-Jackson, generally kept security waits during the 2006 Thanksgiving travel season to 20 minutes or less.
The airport advises travelers to arrive two hours before scheduled departures for domestic flights and three hours for international flights. They also encourage passengers to check the airport’s web site (www.atlanta-airport.com/) before leaving home for information about security waits, parking availability and flight delays.
“We’re not worried about the weather at this point,” Grangent said. “It should hold off through the worst of the rush.”
No rain is expected in the Atlanta area until Wednesday night, Grangent said. He pointed out, however, that bad inclement weather in other parts of the country can have a ripple effect on flights to and from Hartsfield-Jackson.
PASSENGER VOLUME: Hartsfield-Jackson projections for passenger volume each day of the Thanksgiving holiday period. Figures include connecting passengers as well as those arriving in or departing from Atlanta.
Tuesday: 295,000
Wednesday: 290,000
Thursday: 173,000
Friday: 196,000
Saturday: 271,000
Sunday: 324,000
Monday: 306,000
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