TSA reports all-time record air travel day

(The Hill) -- The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) hit an all-time high Sunday for the number of travelers screened.

The agency screened nearly 3 million travelers on June 23, which broke the record for the number of people screened in a single day, the TSA said in an announcement. The record comes ahead of what the agency expects to be a busy travel week ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.

TSA is expecting to screen more than 32 million individuals between Thursday, June 27, and Monday, July 8, for the holiday week. This is about 5.4 percent higher than the number of travelers during last year’s Fourth of July season, according to the announcement.

“We expect this summer to be our busiest ever and summer travel usually peaks over the Independence Day holiday,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a statement. “Compared to last year, we have cut our attrition rates by almost half and increased our recruiting as a result of the TSA Compensation Plan that was funded in the budget passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden.”

“The traveling public is on the move, which is a sign of a healthy economy," he added. "We are ready, along with our airline and airport partners, to handle this boost in passenger volumes."

The peak holiday travel day is expected to be Friday, June 28, when the TSA anticipates screening more than 3 million passengers.

TSA’s travel predictions ahead of the Fourth of July fall in line with the travel forecast from AAA, which projected a record number of Americans traveling for the holiday. AAA predicted that 70.9 million people will travel 50 miles or more the week of July 4.