A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agent is wearing a protective mask and is standing behind a protective barrier while examining a passenger at Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) in Arlington, Virginia, USA, on Tuesday, June 9, 2020.
Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
TSA officers checked 1,357,111 people at airports on Friday, marking the highest number of passengers in a single day since March 15, 2020.
The benchmark reflects that air travel is starting to pick up again after a challenging year for airlines caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Air travel to the United States peaked on April 14, 2020, with only 87,500 passengers passing through TSA checkpoints. Travel for 2020 fell by more than 60% from the previous year to 324 million passengers, according to the TSA. The TSA checks passengers at 440 US airports
The reduction in travel has severely affected airlines. US airlines lost more than $ 35 billion, combined, last year due to reduced passenger traffic. Airlines have been forced to reduce flights, block seats and implement security measures in response to the pandemic.
Airlines are hoping for a resurgence of travel in the coming months, with new Covid-19 cases falling in much of the country and more people vaccinated. Thirteen percent of American adults have been fully vaccinated since Friday.
On Friday, passengers were still 20% lower than the number of passengers on the same day last year and decreased by almost 38% compared to 2019.