Industry trade group Airlines for America estimates a 4% jump in air travel during the Labor Day holiday week.
It is expecting up to 15.6 million passengers will take to the skies during the holiday period bginning August 31, fuelled by expanded schedules and falling air fares, it says.
A4A predicts an average of 2.23 million passengers per day will travel up about 82,000 a day from last year.
The busiest days will be September 1 and 2, it says.
"On the heels of this summer’s record volumes and falling ticket prices, A4A anticipates a commensurate increase in the number of flyers. US airlines are well positioned to meet the growing demand for air travel and are responding by increasing the number of seats available by 4%," said A4A’s chief economist John Heimlich.
Fares have fallen by 6% so far this year, the trade group says.
A4A also touted enhanced operational performance for the industry so far this year.
"In the first half of 2016, US airlines bolstered performance in each of DOT’s core operational metrics, in part because of the investments carriers continue to make in newer, larger aircraft, enhanced IT systems, procedures and staffing," said Heimlich.
Airlines’ on-time arrival rate to June 2016 was 82.02%, up from 77.67% in 2015.
