Memorial Day Weekend marks the beginning of the summer travel season.
“We’re really ready. We’ve been preparing for the summer since last fall,” said Jim Moses, senior vice president of DFW Hub Operations for American Airlines.
American Airlines expects to fly 450,000 customers on departing flights from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport this Memorial Day Weekend and 2.9 million customers systemwide.
“We’re obviously flying a very very big schedule this year,” Moses said. “We’re really proud of that.”
Trying to rebound from a bumpy few years for the travel industry, American Airlines announced they hired 1,000 more employees for their DFW operations compared to last summer. Globally, the airlines said it’s entering the summer with 17,600 more employees than in 2021.
Moses said they’ve also invested in new technology to reduce the number of canceled flights.
“Weather and different events that impact travel are inevitable, but it’s how well we prepare and I think that’s what’s different today,” Moses said.
The Antoinne family traveled to North Texas ahead of the busy weekend.
“Our bags came in a little bit late, but other than that – I think I’m excited to keep traveling around this summer,” said Imani Antoinne.
The family flew in to look at homes, preparing to move to North Texas from New Jersey later this year. She said living in the DFW area with easy access to the airport helped in their decision.
“Being centrally located it’s easy to get back and forth between family and if we want to go to California being in the middle it’s perfect,” Antoinne.
DFW International Airport expects a record 78 million passengers to fly through the hub in 2023.