Atlanta Airport Expects 2.5 Million People Over Memorial Day Period

Even more people are expected to pass through Hartsfield-Jackson from May 22-29, when approximately 2.5 million people will use the world’s busiest airport.

Airport officials recommend travelers arrive at the airport at least 2 to 2.5 hours before domestic flights and 3 hours before international flights.

The busiest day of the upcoming airport holiday period is expected to be next Friday, May 24, when 351,194 passengers are expected to pass through the Atlanta airport.

While some passengers are connecting in Atlanta, more than 100,000 people are expected to pass through security at Hartsfield-Jackson that day. This means long queues to get through the screening during peak periods.

Thursday May 23 and Monday May 27 will also be busy, with more than 330,000 passengers at the airport.

A record number of people were processed at Hartsfield-Jackson security checkpoints last year, and the number of passenger screenings has increased 11.6% so far this year, according to Federal Director Robert Spinden security for the Transportation Security Administration in Atlanta.

This year, TSA had three of its 10 busiest days in Atlanta.

The airport recently saw a near-record number of people passing through checkpoints on Friday, May 10, as approximately 104,000 people passed through security checkpoints at Hartsfield-Jackson. This is close to the all-time record set on the Monday after the Super Bowl in Atlanta in 2019.

Last Friday, security checkpoint wait times reached more than 40 minutes at the main checkpoint and queues stretched into the domestic terminal atrium.

Credit: Kelly Yamanouchi

Credit: Kelly Yamanouchi

Compared to 2019, the TSA now has more staff, more checkpoints and more lanes to screen passengers — and the airport has much larger waiting areas for the winding lines of passengers.

During the Memorial Day period, “we will have additional officers on duty to open additional screening lanes and security checkpoints,” Spinden said. “We will open from 3 a.m. on the busiest days. »

Wait times on normal days can average at least 20 to 30 minutes, said Candace Brown, deputy executive director of public safety and security at Hartsfield-Jackson.

“However, during peak holiday travel periods, long waits at the main Homeland Security checkpoint are very possible,” Brown said.

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines, the dominant carrier at the Atlanta airport, says it expects a 5 percent increase in traffic during the Memorial Day period, when it expects to handle nearly 3 million customers. The airline also increased its flight capacity by about 6% this year compared to last year.

Throughout the summer, U.S. airlines are expected to carry a record 271 million passengers, up 6.3% from a year ago, according to industry group Airlines for America. The number of flights scheduled each day this summer is estimated at 26,000, up 5.6% compared to last year.

Airports aren’t the only places that will be crowded with travelers.

Nationally, AAA said it expects a record 38.4 million people to take road trips over the holiday weekend.

“We will now exceed pre-pandemic numbers,” said AAA spokesperson Garrett Townsend.

The busiest time on Georgia roads is expected to be Saturday afternoon, on I-16 East from Atlanta to Savannah, according to the auto club.

Gas prices in Georgia are higher than last year, at an average of $3.40 per gallon, compared to $3.25 over Memorial Day weekend last year.

“Drivers should expect continued volatility at the pump as the summer driving season begins,” AAA spokeswoman Montrae Waiters said in a written statement. “The unpredictable factor remains the cost of oil, and unlike last year, there are now two wars – in the Middle East and Ukraine – that could shake up the oil market. »

AAA said the average round-trip airfare for the holiday weekend is $778, up 2% from last year, according to its booking data. But domestic hotels are 5% cheaper than last year’s Memorial Day weekend, and domestic car rentals are 17% cheaper.

New flights to Hartsfield-Jackson

Delta launches flights from Atlanta to Zurich on May 31, and will launch new routes to Santa Barbara And Fresno In California on June 7.

On May 2, start-up Avelo Airlines launched service to Atlanta with four flights per week from New Haven, CT.

Frontier Airlines announced it would launch flights from Atlanta to Grand Rapids, Michigan And Islip, New York, from May 16; and to Norfolk, Virginia; And Syracuse, New York, from May 17. It operates three flights per week on each route.

Scandinavia Airlines will launch daily service to Atlanta on June 17 with flights to Copenhagen.

Later this year, Alaska Airlines will launch daily flights from Atlanta to Portland from October 1st.

And Sun Country Airlines, a Minneapolis-based low-cost airline, operates a handful of scheduled flights per month from Atlanta, on an intermittent basis. The reason: Sun Country has a contract to fly Major League Soccer teams on charter flights, and after flying a team of soccer players to Atlanta and dropping them off, it will operate a scheduled flight from Hartsfield-Jackson to its seat. Minneapolis hub – and vice versa, with a regular flight from the Minneapolis hub to Hartsfield-Jackson before picking up a team in Atlanta.