TSA is prepared for winter holiday travelers

WASHINGTON — The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) anticipates airport security checkpoints nationwide will be busier this holiday travel season compared to last year.

TSA expects travel volumes to be close to pre-pandemic levels. The busiest days are expected to be Thursday, Dec. 22, and Friday, Dec. 30.

"During the Thanksgiving travel period, we saw the highest throughput volume since 2019, and we expect that trend to continue over the upcoming holiday travel period," said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. "We are prepared for the increased volume and expect to meet our wait time standards of 30 minutes or less in standard lanes and 10 minutes or less in TSA PreCheck® lanes. However, there may be some situations where the capacity of a checkpoint is exceeded."

Additionally, to provide a higher level of assistance for travelers with questions about airport security screening procedures, airline passengers may now send a text using any mobile device to "AskTSA" (275-872). A virtual assistant is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. For more complicated questions, AskTSA staff are available daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. Passengers may still reach out to AskTSA (@AskTSA) on Twitter or Facebook Messenger with questions and comments.

TSA also has several videos for parents and families to watch with young children. Our latest edition in the "TSA KIDS" series is for families traveling with gifts. TSA KIDS videos cover various travel tips, including traveling with snacks and traveling with electronics. More information on our TSA KIDS videos may be found on our YouTube page.

Travelers should keep these top 10 tips in mind while traveling: