JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Transportation Security Administration anticipates a busy Fourth of July weekend for travelers after it reported an all-time high number of travelers screened Sunday across the nation.
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Matthew Satterwhite was one of the travelers.
“My flight leaving Rochester, NY, I’ve never seen it busier than yesterday,” Satterwhite said.
It’s the same sentiment we hear from airline passengers, over and over again today at Jacksonville International Airport.
They advise that if you’re flying within the next week, pack your patience, and get to the airport early like your airline suggests.
“You’re not going to get the seats you want, you’re not going to get the travel experience you’re used to, it’s just different. Pack accordingly and come on time,” Ashley, an airline passenger said.
Another passenger talked about how the parking garages are filling up fast.
“It’s busy, yeah, all the hourly garages are gone which are normally open, so we are on the daily garage, hoping to pay hourly prices,” Auri said.
Another passenger said it was busy for a Tuesday.
“It’s crazy, there’s tons of traffic, there was no parking in the parking garage, abnormally busy for a Tuesday,” Ariel said.
According to TSA, the agency screened 3 million travelers on Sunday which broke the record for the number of people screened in a single day.
TSA is expecting to screen more than 32 million flyers between Thursday, June 27, and Monday, July 8, for the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
TSA expects the peak travel day to be Friday, June 28, and said it is committed to meeting its wait time standards which are 10 minutes and under for TSA Precheck and a 30-minute and under wait time in standard screening lanes.
The Federal Aviation Administration hosted a virtual event with air traffic professionals and a National Weather Service meteorologist, to discuss how the FAA and the Command Center handle the heat of summer and travel volume.
They also discussed what is being done to keep planes safe during severe weather.
“If you’re flying from Atlanta to Los Angeles, aircraft are not going to want to go through those thunderstorms, and we want them to go through, so we will reroute those aircraft,” Walter Williams, National Operations Manager of the FAA said.
Watch the full briefing from the FAA below.
Travel experts said airports are busier than ever because of summer vacation season, Fourth of July weekend and flyers have more independence than ever to work virtually anywhere in the country.
Record flyers also indicate the country’s economy is strong and Americans have the money to travel to other cities and states.