The Transportation Security Administration is fully staffed and ready for record-breaking crowds this holiday season. Those are the words from TSA Administrator David Pekoske, who spoke with TPG in a wide-ranging discussion about the future of the TSA and its future under the incoming Trump administration.
TSA expects the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and the Sunday after Thanksgiving to be the busiest days. The Sunday after Thanksgiving may be the busiest day at TSA checkpoints, with more than 3 million passengers screened. “The Sunday after Thanksgiving is historically our busiest day of the year, so it wouldn’t surprise me if that’s the case,” Pekoske said.
The number 3 million has been reached only once before – July 7, 2024. In fact, the 10 busiest TSA days ever came in the last six months. The Federal Aviation Administration believes that Tuesday, Nov. 26, will be the busiest day of the year.
Pekoske said the TSA is fully staffed and ready to move. “Working side-by-side with our airport and airline partners and the FAA, we’ve optimized staffing and will do everything we can to maintain our wait time standards: less than 10 minutes for TSA PreCheck lanes and less than 30 minutes for regular screening lanes.”
Increase in travel demand
When I asked Pekoske why there is so much demand, he said:
“I think people really want to travel now. And maybe a little bit to say ‘Hey, I couldn’t for a few years. And I’ll go’ … or maybe people who didn’t travel. A lot in the past started and said, ‘Hey, this is a good way to travel. It’s very easy.’ Another part is that, there has been a huge investment in all the airport infrastructure, I mean, it’s hard to go somewhere and not see something at the airport, whether it’s terminal renovations or a new terminal being built.
In fact, he pointed to major new investments in airports like LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and continued development at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). Pekoske looked at the improvements being made to JFK’s new Terminal 1 and the new Terminal 6 as they were being built.
“And these are amazing places, I mean, you know, high, high ceilings, a lot of light, and very good air. People, when they see that, they appreciate the infrastructure investment,” he said.
Pekoske pointed not only to the work done by the TSA but also to everything that happens at the airport – from parking to check-in, TSA checkpoints to gate agents.
“We’re all very focused on the customer experience, and we’ve all collectively really tried to make sure we’re looking at it as sustainable as possible. So there’s been a lot of collaboration over the last few years. As a result of some work we did before the pandemic, but it blossomed as we saw these incredible numbers of people returning to flying,” he said. “So I think people can see the touch, if you will. The interaction with all the workers in that field is better, perhaps, than in the past.”
When talking about the rising interest in travel among young people, Pekoske agreed that social media has helped increase consumers’ desire to travel. He also expressed a desire among the public for more premium travel experiences.
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“There are a lot of travelers in the past who would have stayed in economy. And what they’re doing … is upgrading to business or first class … you know they’re willing to pay for it now,” he said.
What can you bring through security checkpoints?
Questions we get asked all the time at TPG: What items can fit in your carry-on bags and through checkpoints? Can you bring the turkey? How about cranberry sauce?
TSA has set up a variety of ways for you to ask the most burning questions, including on social media, through the TSA website and messaging.
“We’ve worked hard on easy ways for people to understand what they can bring, and one of those ways is to just text us. And the text is very easy to remember: ‘AskTSA.’ And you know you can say, ‘Hey, can I bring a turkey?’ And actually within a second, you’ll get an answer that you can or you can’t,” he said.
“We really want people to use this tool as they feel comfortable using it, because it doesn’t just work during Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Pekoske said. “It works in the summer when we have our biggest volume in six, seven, eight weeks.”
He also noted that you can search the website to find out what is allowed in carry-on and carry-on bags.
“It will tell you what you can bring as a carry-on and what you can bring as a checked item, because sometimes people have the question ‘Well, can I bring, say, a can of cranberry sauce?’ , of course, but you can put it in your carry-on bag.’ And that would give people an easy option that they can see by writing on an official approved web page,” he said.
Finally, that’s not the cranberry sauce you’re going with (unless it’s frozen solid). Pies and turkeys? Yes, they can go through security checkpoints too.
“However, if you can spill, spread, spray, pump or pour it, and it is larger than 3.4 ounces, it must fit in a checked bag,” according to the TSA.
Will Pekoske stay under Trump’s second term?
Pekoske told TPG he would like to serve under a second Trump administration. He said he likes this role. He was nominated by then President Donald Trump in 2017. Pekoske is currently serving an unexpired five-year term until 2027, but a newly elected president may ask him to step down before his term is scheduled to end.
Pekoske has the support of many aviation and industry leaders, but his future now rests in the hands of President-elect Trump.
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