US holiday air travel tops 2019 for first time since COVID

Labor Day marked the first holiday travel weekend to exceed 2019 counts of airport travelers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Transportation Security Administration said.

TSA checkpoints screened 8.76 million people between Friday and Monday — 2% higher than the number recorded on Labor Day weekend in 2019, TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said on Twitter.

The American Automobile Association had forecast that one-third of Americans would travel by road, rail or plane over the holiday weekend.

COVID-19 made a massive dent in air travel in the US and abroad after first striking in late 2019 and early 2020.

The number of total travelers dropped below 90,000 on some days in the initial months of the pandemic crisis. Travel has since rebounded — but the number of people through checkpoints remains below pre-pandemic levels on most days, according to TSA figures.

Airlines have also struggled with staffing issues in the wake of the pandemic, causing a surge in frustrating delays and cancellations.