Hartsfield-Jackson airport already busy for 4th of July travel

ATLANTA - TSA officials are experiencing some of the highest passenger counts ever. 

On Sunday, June 23, the agency said it broke a record for the most people screened in a single day when 2.99 million passengers. Those numbers are expected to grow even more on Friday, when it expects more than three million people to fly.

More than 32 million people are expected to fly during the Fourth of July travel period which starts Thursday, June 27, and runs through July 8. Overall, it's a 5.4% increase from the same time in 2023.

Passengers tell FOX 5 they were anticipating the rush, and got to the airport three hours early to ensure they made their flights.

"We got here three hours early and we're just going to check in and sit because I actually know some people who missed their flights when they got here a couple of hours early," Krystal Kemp said. She and her family were flying to celebrate her graduation.

RELATED: Atlanta airport suggests passengers arrive extra early if traveling for 4th of July

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport officials say they are expecting around 4 million passengers to come through or to Atlanta. The busiest travel day is expected to be Friday with more than 367,000 passengers. Officials are anticipating similar passenger counts on July 7 and 8, which mark the end of the holiday travel period.

Airport officials advise travelers to arrive at least two hours before a domestic flight and three hours before an international flight.

TSA staff are working to get people through screening lanes in less than thirty minutes for standard screening lanes and less than ten minutes for those with TSA precheck.