TSA Shatters One-Day Record for Screened Passengers Amid Thanksgiving Travel Period

Image: Waiting to check in at with TSA security at the airport (photo by Eric Bowman)
Image: Waiting to check in at with TSA security at the airport (photo by Eric Bowman)
Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 10:50 AM ET, Mon November 27, 2023

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) estimated that this Thanksgiving holiday would be a whopper.

Little did it know.

TSA set an American aviation record when it processed an all-time high number of passengers on Sunday, November 26.

Airport officials moved 2,907,378 passengers through security checkpoints on the last day of the extended Thanksgiving weekend.

In fact, it’s been an extraordinary month for airline travel. TSA reported that it moved more than 2 million passengers per day through security every day this month, with the exception of Thanksgiving Day (November 23) itself.

The agency has processed more than 2 million passengers per day, with the exception of Thanksgiving Day, dating back all the way to September 19, 2023.

TSA has never approached 3 million passengers in a single day before and it did so with more than 7,500 flights canceled or delayed in the Midwest because of a snowstorm.

Outside of the disruptive weather, U.S. airlines and airports did not appear to have any significant problems or meltdowns during the holiday. It was a welcome change from last year.

With the heightened demand for travel, TSA added four new participants for its PreCheck program earlier this year. 


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Rich Thomaselli

Rich Thomaselli

Associate Writer

Editor Associate Writer true 9281 14744 Rich Thomaselli has written for TravelPulse since 2014 and has been a professional journalist for nearly 40 years. His work has appeared in USA Today, the New York Times and New York Yankees publications. He is an 11-time writ

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