The Christmas Eve number does not refer to End of the holiday travel rushRather, it is quiet before the people who leave town for the Friday holidays start returning home. Transportation Security Administration numbers show that last week, 7,189,521 people were screened at TSA checkpoints.
Christmas Eve comes six days in a row with US flight numbers of near or more than a million passengers. On Wednesday, 1,191,123 travelers recorded a pandemic record. The number of people who traveled on Christmas Eve is a third of the same day a year ago when more than 2.5 million people flew.
Low travel numbers forced US airlines to lay off tens of thousands of employees in the fall. But executives from united (UAL) And the American Airlines (AAL) Plans announced Tuesday for They send thousands of their registered workers back In response to Congress passing the latest Coronavirus Relief Bill.
The new law includes an extension of the aviation sector Payroll Support Program, Which committed $ 15 billion in aid to repatriate the more than 32,000 United and American Airlines employees who were licensed in September. The companies say the extra money is enough to pay these workers‘ salaries until March 31.
However, the CDC recently stepped up its push to keep passengers at home.
“Traveling can increase your chance of spreading and being exposed to COVID-19,” she said. „Postponing travel and staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19.“
Before Wednesday, it was the previous epidemic record Set on the Sunday after Thanksgiving.
An increase in air travel is raising new health concerns. Experts believe that there will be another spike in Coronavirus infections, similar to Recorded high after Thanksgiving.
CNN Business’s Chauncey Alcorn contributed to this report
