North Texas airlines, airports prepare for busiest Memorial Day weekend ever
NORTH TEXAS – Memorial Day weekend is here and it's forecasted to be the busiest ever.
Dallas Love Field Airport says they expect 190,000 travelers to pass through the airport between May 24 and May 28, with the busiest days being Friday and Tuesday.
In anticipation for the heavy traffic, TSA at Love Field will open at 3:30 a.m. to begin processing passengers. Usually, TSA opens at 4 a.m.
Fort Worth-based American Airlines says they're preparing to serve more than 600,000 customers on nearly 5,000 flights between May 23 and 28, making it the busiest Memorial Day weekend on record for them.
TSA says Friday will be the busiest day nationwide, with nearly 3 million travelers moving through airports. From May 23 through May 29, the TSA expects to screen more than 18 million passengers and crew, an increase of about 6.4% year-over-year.
"In close coordination with airport, airline and travel partners, we are more than ready to handle this summer's increased travel volumes," said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. "We are also continuing to deploy state-of-the-art checkpoint technology that increases security effectiveness, efficiency and enhances the passenger experience and our retention and recruitment numbers are the highest they've ever been."