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On the Friday before the holiday of July 4th, Americans eagerly await three things: fireworks, barbecues and, of course, red, white and blue.
One thing they may not know: the number of people flying across the United States to attend these celebrations.
Despite the chaos of travel during the holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, the Transportation Safety Administration says that Friday could be the busiest travel day of the year.
On Friday only, the agency planned to pass 2,718,000 passengers, or 100,000 more than Sunday after the last Thanksgiving.
Airlines are preparing for full flights.
"People think that our Super Bowl is Thanksgiving, but our Super Bowl is the summer operation," said Dave Holtz, senior vice president of operations and customer service at Delta Airlines. "It is the summer that worries us – it's 90 days of chaos."
And although the end of this week is probably one of the busiest, just as busy for air travelers, officials said.
Every day this summer, airlines plan to carry 2.7 million passengers, compared with 2.5 million on average last summer, according to the airline group Airlines for America.
To help the high number of passengers this weekend, Delta is using a new laser technology, helping pilots to park planes as they approach the door.
In addition, the Orlando International Airport will be the first US airport to use the "biometric exit," a facial recognition technology, the US Customs and Border Patrol and the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority announced for "Transform the passenger experience.
For those planning to be in the air this busy weekend, the TSA says that traveling with fireworks or other explosive devices is prohibited even in checked luggage.
ABC News & # 39; Nathan Luna and Whitney Lloyd contributed to this story.
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