Flying for the holiday this week? Prepare for crowds, as Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport is poised for its “busiest Thanksgiving travel season on record.”
According to the Chicago Department of Aviation, nearly two million people will pass through O’Hare and Midway Airports, starting Tuesday. The stretch is expected to last through Monday, Dec., 1, with airlines projecting a “Thanksgiving surge,” the CDA said.
The latest numbers come after the Federal Aviation Administration earlier this month lifted the unprecedented flight restrictions it placed on airlines during the longest government shutdown in history, with thousands of flights canceled.
Now, the FAA is preparing for its busiest Thanksgiving in 15 years, with more than 360,000 flights nationwide scheduled and more than 17.8 million people expected to be screened at airports, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
In Chicago, O’Hare is expected to handle 1.63 million travelers during the seven-day Thanksgiving travel period. That’s a 9.5% jump from 2024, the CDA said, and “likely the busiest Thanksgiving travel week in the airport’s 70-year history.”
Midway International Airport expected to see nearly 350,000 people pass through over the same travel period, up more than 1.5% from 2024.
The busiest day at both airports, the CDA said, is expected to be Sunday, Nov. 30. The crowds mean TSA may experience longer-than-usual wait times at security checkpoints.
As of 6:45 a.m. Tuesday, 47 flight delays were reported at O’Hare, along with nine cancellations. At Midway, 11 flights were delayed, according to FlyChicago.com.
Travelers with iPhones at O’Hare and Midway can also add their driver’s license or state ID cards to their Apple Wallet, which can be used at airports.
For those driving, AAA projects 1.3 million more travelers will be on the roads than last year, pushing the total number of people traveling by car to at least 73 million.
In Illinois, AAA predicts about 3.7 million people to travel by car this week. NBC 5 traffic reporter Kye Martin noted the busiest time on the roads this week will be between 12 p.m. and 9 p.m. Tuesday, and 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. Wednesday.
But weather in the Chicago area Thanksgiving week could snarl travel plans. Overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday evening, a wind advisory will go into effect for northeastern Illinois and northwest Indiana, with gusts as high as 50 miles per hour at times.
“Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects, including holiday decorations,” the National Weather Service warned. “Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result. Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high profile vehicles on north to south roads.”
In northwestern Michigan, a winter storm warning was in effect mid-week with up to 12 inches of snow possible. And, over the weekend in Illinois, a potential storm could dump between three and six inches of snow Saturday and Sunday.
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