Get ready for busy travel season; airlines could set record
Some of the lowest fares on popular routes are coming from United Airlines, which is trying to regain passengers lost to rivals in recent years and to overcome the image, replayed over and over on the news, of a passenger being brutally dragged off a United Express plane.
At a few airports, travelers will face increased security measures including placing each large electronic device — laptop, tablet, camera — in a separate bin to go through the X-ray machines, which could slow the screening process.
The Transportation Security Administration struggled to keep up last spring, and tens of thousands of travelers missed flights.
Airlines for America expects that for a fifth straight summer, occupancy on the average plane will top 83 percent.
Since the average includes less popular flights, like those late at night, it means that many flights will be full — or even overbooked.
On the nation's highways, the auto club AAA is forecasting that 39 million Americans will drive at least 50 miles away from home over the Memorial Day weekend, a 2.7 percent increase over the holiday weekend last year.
"A lot of motorists will be taking long road trips because gas prices have not hit them in the gut this year," he says.