DIA, United kick off record-setting Memorial Day with busiest days underway

Nicole Fierro
·2 min read

DENVER (KDVR) — Denver International Airport is expecting a record number of travelers to pass through its terminals for the 2024 Memorial Day weekend.

DIA is projecting the busiest days to be Thursday and Friday before the holiday. The airport said it expects over 450,000 people to pass through TSA, projecting 80,000 on Thursday and Friday each, which is around 9% more than during Memorial Day weekend in 2023.

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FOX31 got a rare, behind-the-scenes look at operations underway with one of the busiest airlines at DIA.

The Memorial Day weekend begins what United anticipates will be its busiest summer of travel ever, with 5% more customers flying with the airline this June, July and August.

“We’re expecting our busiest summer ever in our 98-year history,” said Jonna McGrath, United’s vice president of airport operations at DIA. “We, on average, have about 4,400 flights a day. That’s three takeoffs every minute. So it just really shows the immense size of how many people will be traveling this summer.”

McGrath told FOX31 the company started preparing in January for the summer.

“From curbside to the pilot that’s flying the plane, and the flight attendants that are doing the service and keeping you safe on board, we have extra staff in all those areas to ensure we have a good holiday weekend,” she said.

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United ramp lead Erik Dahl has been working at DIA for two years and said he does not mind staying grounded and working to make sure others can take off and enjoy the holiday.

“I really like helping people out. It’s part of my passion is to make sure that people get to where they want to go safely,” Dahl said. “I’m just very thankful to be part of that process.”

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