Labor Day travel could be busiest ever at Pittsburgh International Airport

Pittsburgh International Airport experienced its busiest July in almost 20 years — and the high numbers are expected to carry over into travel during Labor Day weekend, the Transportation Security Administration said.

This July, the airport saw over 962,000 travelers flying in and out, which was the highest number since 2005, according to the Allegheny County Airport Authority. June’s traffic also reached a new record high in almost 20 years, the authority said.

Between Thursday and Sept. 4, TSA said it expects to screen more than 17 million people at airports nationwide, with the peak travel day being Friday. Pittsburgh is expecting big travel crowds on Thursday, Friday and Monday, according to TSA.

This summer has been the busiest in TSA’s nearly 23-year history, the agency said.

“People are traveling more than ever this summer, and TSA along with our airline and airport partners stand ready to close the busiest summer travel period on record during this upcoming Labor Day weekend,” David Pekoske, a TSA administrator, said in a statement.

In Pittsburgh, compared to July 2023, July’s traffic was up 11.2% over last year’s total of 865,000 passengers, according to the authority. It was also 5.3% higher than the July 2019 number of 914,000 travelers, for pre-covid comparison.

In 2024, more than 5.7 million passengers have traveled through Pittsburgh International Airport, which is the most since 2007, according to the authority. Passenger volumes are up 9.4%.

Cargo volumes also rose by 14% year-over-year and 5.2% year-to-date at the airport, according to the authority.

“[July] was a very busy month again as passengers continue to take advantage of the flights, showing the strength of our market,” Pittsburgh International Airport CEO Christina Cassotis said at the authority’s August board meeting, according to news release.