Memorial Day weekend begins with highest number of travelers at US airports since 2019

gettyrf_81122_airtrafficcontroller624323
JazzIRT/Getty Images

(NEW YORK) — With Memorial Day weekend travel underway, U.S. airports recorded the highest number of passengers on Thursday since before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

The Transportation Security Administration said it screened 2,658,057 people at checkpoints across the country on Thursday, the highest daily number since 2019.

Even more passengers could be screened on Friday.

According to AAA, airports could see the busiest Memorial Day weekend since 2005.

Nearly 3.4 million people are expected to take to the skies over the holiday, up 11% from 2022 and 5.4% from 2019, according to AAA.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

getty_dowjones_2626803407

Dow closes above 50,000 for the first time ever

February 6, 2026 Business

The Dow Jones Industrial Average logo appears on the screen of a smartphone in Reno, United States, on December 1, 2024. (Photo by Jaque Silva/NurPhoto via Getty Images) (NEW YORK) — The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed

gettyrf_82522_shoppingvegscanvasbag2028229116081

Consumer sentiment brightens, defying economists’ expectations

February 6, 2026 Business

Grocery Store Shopping Supermarket (Oscar Wong/Getty Images) (NEW YORK) — Consumer sentiment ticked higher in February for the second consecutive month as inflation fears appeared to ease, though shopper attitudes remained well below levels registered a year ago, University of

getty_bitcoin_2526470438

Bitcoin plunges to lowest level since October 2024

February 5, 2026 Business

Bitcoin signage on the exhibition floor during the Plan B Forum Bitcoin conference in San Salvador, El Salvador, on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. The conference brings together world leaders, technologists, and entrepreneurs to discuss nation-state Bitcoin adoption,