A record number of passengers passed through Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport security checkpoints on Thursday, but that record was expected to fall Friday as the Memorial Day travel period kicked into high gear.
By midday Friday, more than 50,000 people had passed through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints at the Atlanta airport, a 3% increase from Thursday’s pace at that time, according to the agency. TSA said it saw roughly 111,000 people pass through security checkpoints during the full day Thursday.
That surpassed the previous record set on the Monday after the Super Bowl in Atlanta in 2019, when about 104,000 passengers went through security at the Atlanta airport. Friday was projected to be Memorial Day Weekend’s busiest travel day.
Credit: John Spink
Credit: John Spink
Security wait times were moderate Friday morning and early afternoon, generally ranging from a handful of minutes to about 20 minutes, according to airport estimates. Social media, usually abuzz with angry customers when wait times are long, was mostly free of airport complaints during the first half of the day.
During some of the airport’s busiest periods, wait times can reach 50 minutes.
Though the security lines were relatively tame through Friday afternoon, airport officials are advise travelers to get to the airport at least 2 to 2.5 hours before departure.
TSA ramped up staffing early in the morning, and is adding more officers in an effort to keep lines under control.
“We will do our best to screen standard passengers in under 30 minutes and passengers enrolled in TSA PreCheck in under 10 minutes,” TSA Federal Security Director Robert Spinden said in a news release.
Officials have been working to address long wait times at security checkpoints with the TSA, according to Hartsfield-Jackson General Manager Balram Bheodari.
Credit: John Spink
Credit: John Spink
He said the airport received a commitment from TSA to increase staff with 80 more full-time equivalent employees in Atlanta.
While security checkpoints are processing record traffic, even more people are passing through the Atlanta airport when counting connecting passengers on the concourses. More than 350,000 passengers are expected to pass through Hartsfield-Jackson on Friday.
While Thursday and Friday are already busy, Monday will also bring heavy volumes of passengers at the airport.
Travelers also need to have a plan for how to get to Hartsfield-Jackson, especially if driving. During busy periods, airport and off-airport parking decks and lots tend to fill up, so it’s a good idea to make a reservation or use an alternative, such as MARTA or a rideshare service.
Credit: John Spink
Credit: John Spink
Adding to the holiday rush, severe weather could impact travel plans throughout the weekend.
While Atlanta is not expected to fall under severe thunderstorm warnings Saturday or Sunday, other parts of the U.S. could face bad weather that could impact air travel across the country. The latest weather forecast from AccuWeather placed the Oklahoma region under “high risk” of severe thunderstorms Saturday night, while southern Illinois and Indiana were similarly at risk Sunday night.
“Unfortunately, we are talking about two days of dangerous weather setups with a tornado threat, a risk for damaging wind gusts, large hail, and flash flooding,” said AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter. “These threats on a holiday weekend are always a concern.”
