Hartsfield traffic will remain steady as compared to last Christmas

Holiday traffic at Hartsfield Jackson International Airport is expected to be about as busy as last year, but travelers may encounter smaller crowds at other airports around the country as airlines cut back flight schedules.

Traffic at the airport is expected to be roughly flat from Dec. 18 through Dec. 24, according to spokesman John Kennedy. With airlines doing last-minute fare sales and travelers booking last-minute flights, Kennedy said it can be difficult to project holiday traffic.

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John Bazemore / AP

Hartsfield officials expect holiday traffic to be as busy as last year around Christmas.

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The Air Transport Association, an airline industry group, expects a 9 percent decline in the number of passengers traveling on U.S. airlines during the 21-day holiday travel period running from Thursday, Dec. 18, to Wednesday, Jan. 7, compared with the comparable period last year. Airlines have cut back flight capacity by about the same amount.

About 2 million passengers daily are expected to fly on U.S. airlines during that period. The busiest days are projected to be Friday, Dec. 19, and Saturday, Dec. 27, when planes will average 90 percent full.

While many smaller city airports have seen dramatic declines in flights, Atlanta is “escaping the brunt of it,” in part because of Delta’s merger with Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest Airlines, according to Minneapolis-St. Paul-based travel expert Terry Trippler.

But generally at airports across the nation, “many of the planes will still be full, but there won’t be as many flights, so not as many people milling around the airport,” Trippler said. “The hassle factor is ratcheted down considerably this year over last year.”

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines expects to carry about 8.5 million customers from Dec. 19 through Jan. 5. Dec. 19 and 20 and Jan. 1-4 will be the busiest days for Delta.

With gasoline prices near their lowest levels in years, some holiday travelers may be driving or traveling by bus or train to see family instead of flying.

AAA projects that during the holiday travel period, the Southeast is expected to produce the largest number of automobile travelers compared with other regions of the United States. Travel by automobile nationwide is expected to decline by 1.2 percent — smaller than the decline in air travel. Travel by train, bus or other modes of transportation will be up by 0.7 percent.

AAA also said air fares for Christmas are down by about 9 percent from last year, while air fares for the week of New Year’s are up an average of 3 percent.

Those who had not planned to travel for the holidays may find good deals on less-popular travel days for last-minute travel. As economic concerns prompt travelers to take to the skies less, “the airlines are offering tremendous deals to get out of town on the off dates,” Trippler said.