U.S. Saw Highest Passenger Numbers Since Before The Pandemic Last Weekend

U.S. Airports Saw Highest Passenger Numbers Since Before The Pandemic Last Weekend

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screened nearly 2.46 million passengers at airport security checkpoints across the country on Sunday. This is the largest number of airport travelers observed in a single day since the pandemic began.

According to TSA’s daily passenger count, a total of 2,462,097 passengers were screened at security checkpoints on June 26. It is the first time the agency has recorded such a high throughput of travelers since before the pandemic, when more than 2.5 million passengers were screened on Feb. 11, 2020.

The new record number of passenger screenings comes at a time when airports and airlines are struggling to cope with the influx of American travelers eager to take the summer vacation they have put off for the past two years.

Airlines and airports have been heavily congested in recent weeks due to staffing and equipment shortages, as well as extreme weather conditions across the country. Customers have had to put up with particularly long waiting times and frequently learned that their flights had been delayed or canceled.

TSA: Number of airline travelers in the US drops to lowest seen since May

The 4th of July is expected to be a very busy travel period as Americans try to make the most of summer. According to Travel + Leisure, U.S. airports recorded more than two million passengers on all but two days in the month leading up to the highly anticipated vacation weekend.

Air traffic has been on the rise for several months, and the last two federal holidays have given us an idea of what to expect over the Fourth of July weekend. Over Memorial Day weekend, 11.2 million passengers flew through U.S. airports, while more than 9.4 million passengers flew over the Juneteenth/Day Father’s long weekend.

A TSA representative gave top tips for speeding through a checkpoint on Twitter on Monday in addition to urging travelers to come early.

“When waiting in a security line, use that time wisely by removing items from your pockets and placing them in your carry-on bag to save time in the checkpoint,” she tweeted.