More airspace = fewer Christmas flight delays

Air travel during the upcoming Christmas and New Year’s holidays may be less problematic than in past years thanks to the government’s plan to open holiday express lanes in the sky between December 21 and January 2. The Department of Defense will allow commercial airlines to use airspace normally reserved for the military over the East and West Coasts. Typically, busy travel days result in traffic jams in the sky when too many planes try to squeeze into narrow air corridors between busy airports.

Holiday express lanes were also opened over Thanksgiving week, which contributed to the remarkable smoothness of flying during what is typically one of worst times of the year to travel. It worked so well that the airlines have been clamoring for the government to open these express lanes on a more regular basis.

Whether or not Christmas air travel will run as efficiently as Thanksgiving depends heavily on the weather and airline and airport staffing, but the opening of military airspace should make a difference. To learn how you can make your holiday travel easier, read Associate Editor Sarah Pascarella’s tips.