The number of airline travelers over the Labor Day holiday exceeded the number of travelers for the same weekend in 2019, a first for comparisons with pre-pandemic travel.  The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screened more than 8.7 million people over the four-day long weekend. According to the TSA, the weekend travel volume represents 102% of volume for the same pre-pandemic holiday weekend in 2019 and is the first time that a holiday weekend passenger screening volume exceeds that of 2019.

In 2019, Labor Day was on Monday, Sept. 2, and TSA screened 8.62 million passengers. The Labor Day weekend represents the conclusion of the summer travel season. This year, Friday marked the heaviest travel day, as TSA officers screened 2.48 million passengers.

Over the course of the long weekend, 94.9% of TSA PreCheck^® passengers waited less than 5 minutes. About 91.6% of those passengers in standard screening lanes waited less than 15 minutes.

During the weekend, Transportation Security Officers intercepted 67 firearms and prevented them from entering aircraft passenger cabins. On average, TSA stopped 17.3 firearms each day at checkpoints since the beginning of the year. If this pace continues, TSA anticipates that firearm catches at checkpoints will eclipse the current full year-record of 5,972 firearms intercepted at the nation’s checkpoints in 2021.

“TSA’s highly trained and dedicated workforce facilitated secure travel for millions of passengers during the busy summer travel season with very little disruptions at the checkpoint,” said TSA Acting Administrator David Pekoske. “We were also able to continue the deployment of new technologies that facilitate stronger identity verification procedures and enhanced security screening for carry-on bags.”

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced today the implementation of a new gender option for the TSA PreCheck® application process.

The TSA PreCheck program application has been updated to include an additional gender marker option to better serve non-binary and gender non-conforming Americans. This action will ensure the TSA PreCheck system accurately reflects traveler gender. As of April 2022, TSA has allowed TSA PreCheck applicants to select their gender based on self-attestation, regardless of the sex assigned at birth.

“TSA remains committed to ensuring all travelers are treated with respect and dignity,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “This new TSA PreCheck enrollment feature reaffirms our commitment to equality and inclusion for all people, including the LGBTQI+ community.”

This new gender marker option will not impact the security screening process. Security screening is conducted without discrimination against travelers based on their race, color, sex, gender, gender identity, national origin, religion or disability.

If you are a member of the TSA PreCheck Application Program, you may call (855) 347-8371 weekdays, between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. EDT, to request a gender data update. Updating of a traveler’s gender on other identification documents is not required to enroll in TSA PreCheck screening. Travelers will receive TSA PreCheck security screening even if their current gender differs from the gender provided when they enrolled in TSA PreCheck, as long as the name, known traveler number (KTN) and date of birth on their reservation matches their record with TSA.

Prior to a flight, travelers may contact the TSA Cares helpline at (855) 787-2227 with questions about screening policies and procedures, as well as what to expect as they proceed through the security checkpoint. Travelers may request the assistance of a Passenger Support Specialist, who will provide assistance through the security screening process and visit tsa.gov/transgender-passengers for more information.