Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, or ABIA, saw its second-busiest day ever on July 1, with over 37,000 departing passengers.

This is the first time the Fourth of July holiday has been one of the top five busiest days for ABIA. The last busiest Fourth of July travel date was July 1, 2022, with about 33,000 departing passengers, according to ABIA officials.

Some context

The previous second busiest day for ABIA was the Friday before this year’s South by Southwest Conference & Festivals, with over 36,800 passengers departing.


May 2022 marked the busiest month in ABIA’s history, with over 2 million passengers traveling through the airport that month.

ABIA officials anticipated a busy season this summer, as airlines began to add new destinations, use larger airplanes and increase route frequencies. Compared to last summer, up to 7% more airline seats are for sale between May and July, according to a news release from ABIA.


The action taken

In 2021, ABIA launched Journey with AUS, an expansion and development program aimed at addressing increased passenger growth.


This will include the construction of a new midfield concourse, the area in which travelers pass through to arrive at their gates. ABIA launched a survey June 28 to begin determining the design of the midfield concourse. The survey is available online through July 7.

ABIA settled two lawsuits on June 1 for $88 million with South Terminal operator LoneStar Airport Holdings LLC to remove the terminal in 2025 to make way for the midfield concourse.

Going forward

Departing passengers should arrive at least two and half hours prior to their domestic flight departure when passing through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints. For international flights, ABIA officials recommend arriving three hours prior to departure. There are a total of four TSA checkpoints in the airport.


For more information on ABIA, visit www.austintexas.gov/airport.