FAA sounds alarm as summer flyers approach July's biggest air traffic crunch

Travelers taking to the skies today are expected to face the busiest air travel day of July.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is forecasting over 56,000 flights nationwide on Thursday, July 9, the agency told Fox News Digital.

The FAA's latest forecast calls for 56,311 flights — just eight fewer than the 56,319 flights recorded on June 25, the busiest day of the year so far.

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The timing may surprise some travelers, with the busiest flying day of the month falling nearly a week after the Fourth of July rather than during the holiday weekend itself.

New York-based travel expert Lee Abbamonte told Fox News Digital the unusual travel spike reflects shifting summer vacation patterns following the Fourth of July holiday.

"This unusual mid-July surge is due to peak summer vacation travel and people returning from extended Fourth of July trips," Abbamonte said.

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"This has all added up to a ridiculously busy travel day in a normally very busy time of the year," he added.

He said travelers who delayed their return flights may also have benefited from lower fares.

"I think that has to do with extended vacations and the fact that off-days are generally cheaper for flying. Flying today on a Thursday is cheaper than it would have been last Sunday or even Monday with the holiday weekend," Abbamonte said.

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Gary Leff, a Texas-based travel industry expert and author of the blog "View From the Wing," told Fox News Digital that while July 4 marked the peak of the holiday itself, it was not necessarily the busiest day for flight operations.

"Many people drive for the Fourth of July," Leff said.

"Now that summer is in full swing, schools are out and bigger summer trips are underway, you get a combination of return traffic from extended trips, mid-summer leisure demand and the heavy end-of-week airline schedule," Leff said.

To help travelers navigate the crowds, Leff recommended booking nonstop flights whenever possible and choosing early morning departures, which are generally less likely to be affected by delays that build throughout the day.

"When possible, travel nonstop," he said. 

"Connections multiply the chances that something will go wrong."