Air travel hits new record as Spring break and Easter travelers collide at Pittsburgh’s airport

MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Spring break season is in full swing, and after a busy weekend, many travelers at the Pittsburgh International Airport were making their way back home.

“We hung out by the pool, went to the bars, went to the casino,” said Benjamin Dettorre of Ross Township. “I don’t think we got home any night until about 4.”

The busy travel weekend broke records for the TSA. Thursday, March 28, which is the start of the Easter weekend, marked the 10th busiest day on record with the TSA screening more than 2.7 million passengers.

That day is when Benjamin Dettorre and his friends flew out of Pittsburgh to Vegas and waited more than an hour at the security checkpoint. Dettorre said the line spilled out past the ropes.

“I got here pretty early, and security was out the door,” he said. “TSA precheck and Clear were all backed up. It just wasn’t moving. There were a lot of people, probably the most I’ve ever seen in the airport.”

Sunday, there was a steady flow of people in line for security and it was moving along pretty quickly.

Although Pittsburgh’s airport wasn’t too busy on Easter Sunday, Northside native Sir Diego Brazil said Fort Lauderdale’s airport was packed.

“Oh my God, my flight was at 8 in the morning, and I thought I’d be the only one there,” he said. “It’s very early Sunday morning and I’m thinking everyone would be at home resting, getting ready for church and celebrating Easter. Oh my God, everyone was at the airport. I was so surprised. The airport was booked and busy.”

The record-breaking travel weekend was also pricey for some.

Brazil had to book a last-minute flight home for his aunt’s funeral and said if it weren’t for his generous friend who helped him out, he wouldn’t have been able to afford the ticket.

“$600 roundtrip,” Brazil said. “I do have flyer miles with JetBlue, Delta, United. It didn’t matter. It would’ve wiped out all my flyer miles. It was horrible.”

Monday, April 1 is expected to be another busy travel day. If you are flying, give yourself plenty of time for traffic, parking, returning a rental car and going through security.

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