If you’ve ever tried to fly on or around Thanksgiving, you would be inclined to agree that it is among the busiest travel times of the year. Unfortunately, this holiday season will kick off with most airlines cutting the number of flights they offer. This will lead to fuller planes, fewer options and, of course, higher fares. According to USAToday, the combined cuts will lead to an 11% overall drop from last years flights. That’s 2.5 million fewer seats than last year’s Thanksgiving season (between the 20th and 30th of November).
The biggest cutbacks come from USAirways, which will drop its service by 40% compared to last year. Delta will cut 26% of its flights. The only two major names bucking the trend are JetBlue and Southwest. JetBlue is upping its ante by 3% by the end of the month, while Southwest is planning 15 new flights for the same period. Still, these increases are quite modest when compared to the substantial cuts in the industry. The bottom line: Thanksgiving season travelers who haven’t booked their flight yet are in for higher prices and fewer options.