FAA reports ‘record number’ of flights for Thanksgiving week

A “record number” of planes crossed the US during Thanksgiving week this year, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

On Sunday, Nov. 24 and Thursday, Nov. 28, the FAA says it has “safely operated more than 232,000 flights” in the US, including 52,000 on Tuesday alone.

12,137,606 people passed through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints during that time, including more than 2.7 million on the day before Thanksgiving, according to the agency’s latest figures.

That’s an increase from the 11,740,934 passengers the TSA recorded traveling during the same 5-day period last year.

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“To help with East Coast traffic volume, the FAA has used military airspace on the Atlantic Coast and Gulf of Mexico that the military has released for use by commercial aircraft,” the FAA told FOX Business in a statement.

“Controllers implemented traffic control systems to help expedite air traffic during severe weather in the Northeast and West Coast, as well as snow in the Rockies,” it continued.

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Travelers wait at a shared taxi stand at Ronald Reagan National Airport before the Thanksgiving holiday in Arlington, Virginia, US, Wednesday, Nov. 27. (Reuters/Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

“Despite the record numbers, only 0.3 percent of flights were canceled, and delays were a record low of 1.2 percent of flights,” the FAA said.

American Airlines planes are parked at LaGuardia Airport in New York City on Wednesday, Nov. 27. (Reuters/Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

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“The FAA is prepared to continue recording aircraft volume through Monday,” it added. “Today, low clouds and wind may cause minor delays at airports in New York and Boston and Philadelphia. The Great Lakes area can expect snow Saturday through Monday.”