Fog, rain slow some flights at Hartsfield-Jackson

Delta Airlines jets line up at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. (AP/John Bazemore)

Fog and rain caused some flight delays at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport at the start of the busiest travel day of the year.

But airport officials on Sunday say they're off to a crowded, but smooth start for Thanksgiving travelers trying to get home.

National Weather Service meteorologist Patricia Atwell says weather conditions were causing low visibility that could slow aircraft arrivals.

The Federal Aviation Administration reported departure delays between 15 to 30 minutes and arrival delays of about 45 minutes Sunday morning because of clouds and low visibility.

Airport officials urged travelers to do their homework -- checking flight status, security waits and available parking -- before getting to the airport.

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Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, http://www.ajc.com

(AP)

Thanksgiving travel period underway

Many travelers hit the roads, and the skies Wednesday as the Thanksgiving holiday period began at 6pm, running through midnight Sunday. At Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, officials expect to see a slight increase for the 102-hour stretch over last year, to about 1.7 million travelers moving through the airport. On the road, officials predict more than a million Georgians will travel more than 50 miles this weekend--a bit down from last year.

Early holiday travel off to good start

The early start to Thanskgiving holiday travel looks good for Georgians. The state Department of Transportation says most construction involving lane closures will be suspended from now until midnight Sunday. Current gas prices are friendly to drivers--the average in Georgia for regular unleaded is in the $1.70 range. It's the lowest for the Thanksgiving holiday in four years. And for people using Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International airport, security wait times early Wednesday morning were listed at 10 minutes.

Governor Perdue heads to Spain

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue is traveling to Spain for a weeklong economic development trip, even as he's asking state agencies to cut back on travel amid the state's budget crunch. Perdue's spokesman Bert Brantley did not immediately have a price tag for the taxpayer funded trip. But Brantley said that the state needs to continue marketing itself for the economy to recover. He said the governor is optimistic the trip will yield jobs and investment for Georgia. Perdue has called on state agencies to slash their budgets to meet an estimated $1.6 billion budget shortfall this year. As part of that he has asked them to halt nonessential travel.

(Associated Press)

Heavy travel today for holiday

Millions of people are traveling today, many through Georgia’ main airport in Atlanta. Foggy weather has thus far not hampered travel at Hartsfield Jackson International Airport. As of about noon, the airport’s website reported wait times of less than 10 minutes in security lines. Flights are also largely on time. Today and January 2nd are the season’s heaviest travel days.

Atlanta airport officials: "a really good day"

As people across the state settle-in for Thanksgiving Day meals and celebrations today, officials with Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport reported few flight delays yesterday. The day is traditionally known as the busiest travel day of the year. Security checkpoint lines were reported as moving steadily. Yesterday's travel day was said by an airport spokeswoman to be "a really good day before Thanksgiving".

Gas prices not expected to deter holiday drivers

Despite near-record high gas prices, more holiday travelers are expected on Georgia roads this year than last. AAA says over 1.1 million Georgians will travel 50 miles or more by car this week as gas prices hover nearly a dollar above what they were in 2006. Garrett Townsend, a spokesman for AAA South, says high gas prices rarely deter families from their holiday traditions. “We certainly have favorable weather with this time of year and a lot of people plan family trips, going down to Florida and visiting the amusement parks there. So, lots of favorable conditions in the Southeast region,” Townsend says. AAA forecasts a two percent increase in the number of Thanksgiving drivers in the Southeast this year -- the greatest increase for any U.S. region. Officials say the heaviest traffic on Georgia’s roadways will be Tuesday through Wednesday and then on Sunday, as people return home.

Atlanta airport security ready for travel crush

The holiday period starts tomorrow, and Atlanta airport security officials say they’ll be fully-staffed to handle the crush of travelers.

The 12-day holiday travel period could see record numbers of flyers using Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International airport. Airport officials say the Transportation Security Administration is not equipped to handle the load of passengers.

TSA spokesman Jon Allen disagrees. He says it will be “all hands on deck” with part-timers added for this period.

"We actually did some adjustments to our scheduling that went into effect a couple of months ago…to deploy staff at different times, in order to try to better meet those peak travel demand times”.

Security wait-times last weekend were well-above the airport’s target of 15-20 minutes.

TSA does plan to cut 50 full-timers from its Atlanta-operations, down to a regular number of 850.