Total U.S. domestic capacity during Thanksgiving week is running at almost 5% above pre-pandemic levels, data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser shows, with Nov. 26 set to break the record for the highest number of airline seats deployed during a single day.
Routes’ analysis of the schedules data reveals that there are about 19.16 million domestic seats available during the week commencing Nov. 20—barring any weather-related disruptions—marking a rise of 4.5% on the corresponding Thanksgiving week in 2019 before the pandemic. Capacity is also up by 7% year-on-year.
Although this week’s capacity level is lower by 3.7% on the previous seven days, given that Thanksgiving Day itself is the quietest travel day of the year in the U.S., the Sunday following the national holiday is set to be the busiest day in history.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) expects to screen over 2.9 million passengers on Nov. 26, beating the previous record of 2.88 million passengers set on June 30 this year. Overall domestic capacity on the day will reach a record level of 3.07 million seats across some 23,100 flights. The previous daily high came on Oct. 12 with 3.06 million domestic seats.
International capacity levels on flights to and from the U.S. are also set to top pre-pandemic levels. There will be some 5.69 million international seats provided by carriers in the week beginning Nov. 20, representing growth of 15.5% and 10% compared with the Thanksgiving weeks in 2022 and 2019, respectively.
Overall, Airlines for America (A4A) expects nearly 30 million travelers over the 11-day travel period from Nov. 17 through Nov. 27, which is an all-time high. “We have never seen that many people fly over Thanksgiving before,” A4A Senior VP for Communications Rebecca Spicer says.
“U.S. airlines have been preparing for months on end to make sure they are ready to welcome millions of travelers this Thanksgiving. They have been hiring aggressively ... and continuously adjusting their schedules to make sure they have the right number of seats for the right routes.”
Southwest Airlines will offer the most U.S. domestic capacity during the 2023 Thanksgiving week with 4.5 million seats, giving the carrier a 23.6% market share. American Airlines ranks second with 3.86 million seats, followed by Delta Air Lines with 3.6 million, United Airlines with 2.8 million, and Alaska Airlines with 946,000.
Looking at the busiest airports, Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) has the most scheduled available domestic departure seats this week. In total there are 1.01 million seats on offer, marking a rise of 0.5% on Thanksgiving week in 2019.
Denver International Airport (DEN) has 834,208 U.S. domestic seats available in second place, followed by Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in third with 743,074. Las Vegas International Airport and Chicago O’Hare International Airport complete the top five with 626,747 and 612,825, respectively.
The busiest U.S. domestic route this Thanksgiving week will connect ATL and Orlando International Airport, with more than 65,132 two-way seats being offered by carriers. Honolulu-Kahului ranks second on 64,556 seats, with Las Vegas-Los Angeles third on 63,586. Denver-Phoenix Sky Harbor and ATL-Fort Lauderdale complete the top five.
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