LAX: Sunday sees rush of travelers as Thanksgiving fliers return home

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Sunday was expected to be among one of the busiest travel days of the year at Los Angeles International Airport as Thanksgiving flyers return home.

Some 94,000 travelers were expected to pass through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints throughout the day at the facility, according to LAX officials, who urged flight passengers to arrive as early as possible.

"The lower/arrivals level has been faster to drive vs upper/departures level," a tweet from the @flyLAXairport account said after 1 p.m.

Between Nov. 18 and Nov. 30, an estimated 2 million people will depart from and arrive at the airport. Across the U.S. on Saturday, more than 2.2. million people were screened at TSA checkpoints, the agency said.

"We are expecting 12,000 passengers per hour through 6 p.m. tonight with heavier volume from 10-midnight," an LAX tweet said. "We project 92,000 vehicles will use the Central Terminal Area today."

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COVID-19 tests are available across from Terminal 6, inside the Tom Bradley International Terminal, and near the information booths at the arrivals area of Terminal 2's lower level.

Masks are required at LAX and on flights.

With what's already proving to be a busy holiday flying season, you might be understandably nervous about COVID-19. Here are some tips on how to keep you and your family safe -- and reduce stress -- while flying:

Fly off-hours and on less busy days

If you can travel to and from your destination on less busy travel days, you and your family will encounter fewer people and may be more successful at social distancing, said Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech.

Book window seats

Experts suggest booking window seats for children (or adults) who are not vaccinated, partly due to the air vents along the inside panels of most planes.

Delay your meal

You can also protect yourself by eating when everyone else is masked, Marr suggested.

"When they come around and serve drinks and snacks, I'll take it but I don't eat them right away because that's when everyone else has their masks off," she said.

The CNN Wire contributed to this report.