Millions of Americans will be flying for Thanksgiving this year, hitting pre-pandemic levels. If you'll be one of them, here's how you can make the process easier.
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00:00People are bracing for what's expected to be one of the busiest Thanksgiving travel
00:03periods on record and that starts right here at Philadelphia International Airport.
00:08Many airports across the country are expecting record-breaking numbers as families head home
00:13for turkey dinner.
00:15Nearly 80 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more from home this Thanksgiving
00:21according to AAA.
00:23Of that, nearly 5.84 million will be flying, levels that haven't been seen since before
00:28the pandemic.
00:29In Philadelphia, the airport is projecting more than a million people will fly into or
00:34out of PHL.
00:35That will be 12% more than last year and very close to what we had in 2019, just 2% less
00:43than 2019.
00:44But with those crowds come challenges.
00:46The TSA is urging travelers to arrive at least two hours before domestic flights, three hours
00:52for international ones.
00:54It's also a good rule of thumb to sign up for alerts through whatever airline you might
00:57be flying to quickly hear about any flight delays or cancellations.
01:02Just because the weather is great where you are, doesn't mean that'll be the case to where
01:05you might be traveling to.
01:07Any major hubs, Dallas, Fort Worth, Chicago, Denver, if they're having bad weather, flights
01:14and crews might not be able to get to Philadelphia or to another airport.
01:18So when you're getting ready to fly, it's not only looking at the weather in Philadelphia,
01:22but it's looking at weather across the country and paying attention to alerts for other parts
01:27of the country too.
01:28Philadelphia's busiest travel days are expected to be December 1st, 2nd and November 30th
01:34as people head home after the holiday.
01:36Ultimately, plan to pack your patience.
01:39They're also predicting record crowds to be on the roads for Thanksgiving as well.
01:44So if you're driving to the airport, give yourself even more time to get here.
01:49For AccuWeather, I'm Allie Reed.