by Donald Wood
Last updated: 3:05 PM ET, Mon May 3, 2021
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that over 1.6 million people were screened at airport checkpoints on Sunday, May 2, the highest number of passengers since March 12, 2020.
According to The Associated Press, the 1,626,962 people screened may have been the most travelers screened since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it's still down 35 percent compared to the same period in 2019.
The record-breaking Sunday means the TSA has now screened at least one million people per day since March 11. With airlines around the United States reporting an increase in bookings around mid-February as COVID-19 vaccines became more readily available, the number of travelers taking to the skies has continued to grow.
While domestic leisure travel continues to rebound, continued government restrictions are also limiting international travel. Thankfully, the continued expansion of coronavirus vaccine programs has caused the European Union to announce inoculated Americans can visit this summer.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced last month it is safe for vaccinated people to travel domestically, although it continues to warn against travel to most foreign countries.
TSA officials also announced mandatory mask policies would remain in place in airports and onboard planes through at least mid-September.
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