Holiday travel forecast: When to fly, drive this Christmas and New Year’s
Passengers crowd at Los Angeles International Airport as the Independence Day holiday approaches on July 2, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (I RYU/VCG via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — This Christmas and New Year’s holiday period is expected to be the busiest on record.
More than 122 million people are expected to travel between Dec. 20 and Jan. 1 — a 2.2% jump from last year’s record high of 119.7 million travelers, according to AAA.
Here’s what you need to know before you head to the airport or hit the road:
Air travel About 8.03 million people are expected to fly within the U.S. over the holidays — a 2.3% increase from last year, according to AAA.
Florida, Southern California and Hawaii are topping the domestic destinations list for the holidays, according to AAA’s booking data, showing many travelers have decided to forgo a white Christmas for fun in the sun.
United Airlines said it is expecting its busiest winter holiday season ever, with the Saturday after Christmas — Dec. 27 — forecast to be the airline’s most crowded day.
American Airlines said its planning for four flights to depart each minute over its holiday period, from Dec. 18 through Jan. 5. American said its busiest day will be Friday, Dec. 19, followed by Sunday, Jan. 4.
Road travel About 109.5 million people are forecast to travel by car over the holidays, up 2% from last year, AAA said.
The weekend before Christmas — which falls on Saturday, Dec. 20, and Sunday, Dec. 21 — is expected to be especially busy, and so is the day after Christmas, Friday, Dec. 26, according to analytics company INRIX.
Christmas Day and New Year’s Day — which both fall on Thursdays — are anticipated to be the quietest days on the roads, INRIX said.
Luis Nico-Moncada is seen in a photo released by Homeland Security, Jan. 9, 2026. (Department of Homeland Security/X)
(PORTLAND, Ore.) — The driver who was one of two people shot by a federal agent during immigration enforcement operations in Portland, Oregon, last week allegedly rammed his truck into an unoccupied U.S. Border Patrol vehicle prior to the shooting, according to a federal complaint unsealed on Monday.
Luis Nino-Moncada is charged with aggravated assault of a federal officer with a deadly or dangerous weapon and depredation of federal property in excess of $1,000, according to the federal complaint.
Border Patrol agents attempted to stop his Red Toyota Tacoma on Thursday while conducting a targeted enforcement operation focusing on his passenger, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, Nino-Moncada appeared “anxious” and was moving around in the driver’s seat. After agents commanded them to exit, he allegedly put the vehicle in reverse and struck an unoccupied Border Patrol vehicle, causing “significant damage,” according to the complaint.
He then allegedly drove forward and backward multiple times, repeatedly hitting the federal vehicle, according to the complaint, which included several photos of the damaged car.
A Border Patrol agent then fired their service weapon twice at the driver of the truck, according to statements from Border Patrol agents, the complaint said.
Nino-Moncada and the woman fled the scene and agents did not know at the time whether anyone had been hit, according to the complaint.
Border Patrol agents did not pursue the vehicle after it fled, according to the complaint. Nino-Moncada shortly called 911 from an apartment complex several miles from the shooting scene requesting help and Portland Police and medical aid responded, police said.
During an FBI interview, Nino-Moncada allegedly admitted to intentionally ramming the Border Patrol vehicle and acknowledged he knew they were immigration enforcement vehicles, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, there is no body-worn camera footage of the incident and no surveillance or social media video has been found.
Nino-Moncada and his passenger — identified by DHS as Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras — remained hospitalized in stable condition, police said Friday.
Both allegedly have ties to the Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang, according to DHS and Portland police.
DHS alleged that Zambrano-Contreras, a Venezuelan national, is known to be involved with a TdA prostitution ring and was allegedly connected to a July shooting tied to a prostitution deal gone bad.
Nino-Moncada, who was previously ordered removed by a judge in Denver in 2024, allegedly drove the woman during her prostitution activities, according to the complaint.
“According to a newly unsealed complaint, Luis Nino-Moncada — an illegal alien in Portland, Oregon with ties to Tren de Aragua — is alleged to have repeatedly rammed a Border Patrol vehicle, threatening the lives of federal law enforcement officers,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement on X on Monday. “He should NEVER have been in our country to begin with, and we will ensure he NEVER walks free in America again.”
The incident in Portland came a day after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in her car in Minneapolis, Minnesota, sparking outrage and backlash against the presence of federal agents there. Similarly, the mayor of Portland called for immigration enforcement operations to halt while the investigation is ongoing.
In the Minneapolis case, federal officials alleged the motorists tried to run over an agent, who fired defensive shots.
In this Jan. 30, 2026, file photo, Cities Church is shown in St. Paul, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images, FILE)
(NEW YORK) — Thirty more people have been charged in connection with an incident last month in which anti-ICE protesters disrupted a service at a Minnesota church, Attorney General Pam Bondi said Friday.
“At my direction, federal agents have already arrested 25 of them, with more to come throughout the day,” Bondi said in a post on X after a superseding indictment in the case was unsealed. “YOU CANNOT ATTACK A HOUSE OF WORSHIP. If you do so, you cannot hide from us — we will find you, arrest you, and prosecute you.”
The Justice Department had previously charged nine others, including former CNN journalist Don Lemon, for their alleged roles in the incident. Lemon and several others pleaded not guilty to federal civil rights charges earlier this month.
The incident unfolded on Jan. 18, when protesters entered Cities Church in St. Paul. The protesters said one of the pastors is the acting field director of the St. Paul ICE field office. Protesters were heard chanting “Justice for Renee Good” inside the church, referencing the woman fatally shot by a federal agent in Minneapolis in early January.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Liam Conejo Ramos, as he is detained, January 20, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Columbia Heights Public Schools)
(MINNEAPOLIS) — An immigration judge has denied Liam Conejo Ramos and his family’s asylum claim, their attorney confirmed.
The 5-year-old boy and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, were detained on Jan. 20 by immigration agents in Minneapolis and held in a Texas detention facility. A judge ordered them to be released and they flew back to Minnesota on Feb. 1.
Attorney Danielle Molliver told ABC News on Thursday the family was unable to present any evidence in the case before the government filed a motion to terminate the case which a judge granted. Molliver said she has filed an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals.
“We understand that this decision will be appealed and remain hopeful for a positive outcome,” a spokesperson for Columbia Heights Public School District said earlier in confirming the asylum claim denial. “The detention in January of Liam and his father shed light on the harm caused by Operation Metro Surge, during which many children and families have been detained.”
The boy and his father were detained in January shortly after arriving home from the child’s preschool, school officials had said.
Both were taken to a federal detention facility in Dilley, Texas. They had a pending asylum case but no order of deportation.
The five-year-old’s father told ABC News last month that he wants to remain in the United States with his family, saying they fled Ecuador out of fear.
“I asked for asylum to be here for my family, for my children,” Conejo Arias said. “I’m here because I’m scared of returning to my country.”
In a statement after a judge ordered them to be released, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said, “The facts in this case have NOT changed: ICE did NOT target or arrest a child.”
“On January 20, ICE conducted a targeted operation to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias an illegal alien from Ecuador who was RELEASED into the U.S. by the Biden administration,” McLaughlin said. “As agents approached, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias fled on foot — abandoning his child.”
McLaughlin said ICE officers remained with Liam while other officers apprehended his father. Officers, according to McLaughlin, attempted to place Liam with his “alleged mother” who was inside the house, but she allegedly refused to accept custody of the child.
McLaughlin said Conejo Arias told officers he wanted his son to remain with him.
The DHS account differs from what the Conejo Arias, his family’s attorney and schools officials said occurred.
Conejo Arias said when he was detained, he was walking a few feet ahead of his son, trying to alert people who “would come out who could help” them.
“I love my son too much. I would never abandon him,” Conejo Arias said.
Officials from Liam’s school said another adult living in the home was outside begging the agents to allow them to take care of the child, but the request was denied.
