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TSA scans 2 million passengers for first time since March 2020

By Jordan Smith
Updated  June 12, 2021 11:09am EDT
Travel
FOX TV Digital Team

CDC greenlights domestic travel for fully vaccinated people

The new guidelines say vaccinated travelers are less likely to get and spread the virus, but the CDC still recommends safety measures like wearing a mask, social distancing and hand washing.

WASHINGTON - The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reached a pandemic milestone Friday when it scanned more than 2 million passengers for the first time since March 2020.

Friday’s 2,028,961 passengers don’t quite match the 2,727,860 travelers scanned on June 11, 2019. But this year’s total nearly quadruples the 519,304 scans recorded on the same date last year.

"The growing number of travelers demonstrates this country’s resilience and the high level of confidence in COVID-19 counter measures, to include ready access to vaccines," said Darby LaJoye, a senior TSA official. "TSA stands ready to provide a safe and secure screening process as part of the overall travel experience."

Travelers wait in line at a Transportation Security

ORLANDO, FLORIDA, UNITED STATES - 2021/05/28: Travelers wait in line at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening checkpoint at Orlando International Airport on the Friday before Memorial Day. As more and more people have received the

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Airport traffic plummeted in the spring of 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic made travel less safe. Before the pandemic, TSA conducted between 2 million and 2.5 million scans per day.

But it scanned just 87,534 on April 13, 2020. 

As the FDA-authorized vaccines became more widely available, travelers flocked back to the airport — especially after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) deemed domestic travel safe for fully-vaccinated passengers this April.

RELATED: Memorial Day Weekend: TSA screens most passengers of pandemic-era

And earlier this week, the CDC said fully vaccinated Americans can travel internationally with a lower risk of contracting the virus.

Airlines prepared for more passengers by rolling back safety protocols, like unblocking middle seats. Even so, face coverings are still required at airports and airplanes.

TSA said passengers will be required to wear masks on planes, busses, trains and other forms of public transport through Sept. 13, regardless of their vaccination status.

This story was reported from Atlanta.