Holiday travelers may notice that the TSA has been expanding the use of facial recognition technology. It's now at more than a dozen airports across the country.

The agency says it's evaluating the efficiency of this technology before taking it nationwide.

The technology matches your face to the ID a passenger provides at security.

The agency is also testing another system, on a more limited scale, where a person's face is their ID. The machine compares a person's face to a database of pictures the government already has. With new technology also comes new concerns.

"There's a consent aspect, there's a privacy aspect, and there's a security aspect that really needs to be considered a lot more thoughtfully before TSA moves forward with any of this," said India McKinney, director of federal affairs with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group.

McKinney contends there are more privacy protections around the machine checking a person's ID than there are with the system that scans a traveler's face. She notes that the machine checking an ID does not have to be connected to the internet.

McKinney also says it's a mistake to assume the technology will work 100% of the time for everyone.

The TSA said it's continuing to monitor its systems to ensure there is no inherent bias. The agency adds use is voluntary.

"The question, when they say something is voluntary is, how easy is it to opt out? And we've gotten conflicting reports on exactly how easy that is," McKinney contends.

She believes it's going to be up to Congress to make sure people continue to have the ability to opt-out.

AT&T and Verizon will delay launching new wireless service near key airports after the nation’s largest airlines said the service would interfere with aircraft technology and cause massive flight disruptions.

The decision from the telecommunication companies arrived Tuesday as the Biden administration tried to broker a settlement between the telecom companies and the airlines over a rollout of new 5G service, scheduled for Wednesday.

Airlines want the new service to be banned within two miles of airport runways.

AT&T said it would delay turning on new cell towers around runways at some airports — it did not say how many or for how long — and work with federal regulators to settle the dispute.

A short time later, Verizon said it will launch its 5G network but added, “we have voluntarily decided to limit our 5G network around airports." It blamed airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration, saying they “have not been able to fully resolve navigating 5G around airports” although it is working in more than 40 countries.

The announcements came after the airline industry issued a dire warning about the impact a new type of 5G service would have on flights. CEOs of the nation’s largest airlines said interference with aircraft systems would be worse than they originally thought, making many flights impossible.

“To be blunt, the nation’s commerce will grind to a halt” unless the service is blocked near major airports, the CEOs said in a letter Monday to federal officials including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who has previously taken the airlines’ side in the matter.

President Joe Biden said the agreements by AT&T and Verizon “will avoid potentially devastating disruptions to passenger travel, cargo operations, and our economic recovery, while allowing more than 90% of wireless tower deployment to occur as scheduled." He said the administration will keep working with both sides to reach a permanent solution around key airports.

The new high-speed wireless service uses a segment of the radio spectrum, C-Band, that is close to that used by altimeters, which are devices that measure the height of aircraft above the ground. Altimeters are used to help pilots land when visibility is poor, and they link to other systems on planes.

AT&T and Verizon say their equipment will not interfere with aircraft electronics, and that the technology is being safely used in many other countries.

However, the CEOs of 10 passenger and cargo airlines including American, Delta, United and Southwest say that 5G will be more disruptive than earlier thought because dozens of large airports that were to have buffer zones to prevent 5G interference with aircraft will still be subject to of flight restrictions announced last week by the FAA. They add that those restrictions won’t be limited to times when visibility is poor.

“Unless our major hubs are cleared to fly, the vast majority of the traveling and shipping public will essentially be grounded. This means that on a day like yesterday, more than 1,100 flights and 100,000 passengers would be subjected to cancellations, diversions or delays,” the CEOs said.

The showdown between two industries and their rival regulators — the FAA and the Federal Communications Commission, which oversees radio spectrum — threatens to further disrupt the aviation industry, which has been hammered by the pandemic for nearly two years.

This was a crisis that was years in the making.

The airline industry and the FAA say that they have tried to raise alarms about potential interference from 5G C-Band but the FCC ignored them.

The telecoms, the FCC and their supporters argue that C-Band and aircraft altimeters operate far enough apart on the radio spectrum to avoid interference. They also say that the aviation industry has known about C-Band technology for several years but did nothing to prepare — airlines chose not to upgrade altimeters that might be subject to interference, and the FAA failed to begin surveying equipment on planes until the last few weeks.

After rival T-Mobile got what is called mid-band spectrum from its acquisition of Sprint, AT&T and Verizon spent tens of billions of dollars for C-Band spectrum in a government auction run by the FCC to shore up their own mid-band needs, then spent billions more to build out new networks that they planned to launch in early December.

In response to concern by the airlines, however, they initially agreed to delay the service until early January.

Late on New Year’s Eve, Buttigieg and FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson asked the companies for another delay, warning of “unacceptable disruption” to air service.

AT&T CEO John Stankey and Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg rejected the request in a letter that had a scolding, even mocking tone. But they had second thoughts after intervention that reached the White House. The CEOs agreed to the second, shorter delay but implied that there would be no more compromises.

In that deal, the telecoms agreed to reduce the power of their networks near 50 airports for six months, similar to wireless restrictions in France. In exchange, the FAA and the Transportation Department promised not to further oppose the rollout of 5G C-Band.

Biden praised the deal, but the airlines weren’t satisfied with the agreement, regarding it as a victory for the telecoms that didn’t adequately address their concerns.

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Tali Arbel in New York and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this story.

AT&T and Verizon have agreed to postpone their planned rollouts of 5G infrastructure near airports by two weeks, averting — for now — feared widespread disruptions to air travel and shipping as well as a potential legal battle over the matter.

Both carriers confirmed late Monday evening that they will hold off on activating 5G services near airports until Jan. 19 and that in the meantime, officials will continue working on adapting French-style restrictions on 5G to the United States.

"At Secretary [of Transportation Pete] Buttigieg's request, we have voluntarily agreed to one additional two-week delay of our deployment of C-Band 5G services," an AT&T spokesperson said in a statement. "We also remain committed to the six-month protection zone mitigations we outlined in our letter. We know aviation safety and 5G can co-exist and we are confident further collaboration and technical assessment will allay any issues."

AT&T is the parent company of WarnerMedia, of which CNN is a part.

Verizon has also agreed to a two-week delay, according to spokesman Rich Young. He said the delay "promises the certainty of bringing this nation our game-changing 5G network in January delivered over America's best and most reliable network."

The announcement comes as aviation industry officials had been expected to sue the Federal Communications Commission in a last-ditch bid to keep the rollout from taking effect on Jan. 5. Preparations to file the court petition were already underway when news of the agreement arrived, according to an airline industry official, who said that the litigation would be paused in light of the two-week extension.

The official added that behind the scenes, negotiators had been working "frantically to come to an agreement" and that Monday's result may "seem a little dramatic, but that's sometimes how things work. This is potentially a really good result in the interim, here."

In December, the Federal Aviation Administration issued an urgent warning that it planned to ban pilots from using a key aircraft instrument amid concerns that 5G signals could interfere with the devices — a decision the agency said would likely lead to widespread flight delays and diversions.

In a statement, the FAA thanked the wireless carriers.

"Safety is the core of our mission and this guides all of our decisions," the agency said. "We look forward to using the additional time and space to reduce flight disruptions associated with this 5G deployment."

DENVER, Colo. — Airlines are struggling to keep up with demand.

American Airlines has canceled more than 1,800 flights across the country since Friday. It's the second major airline to experience major problems in the last three weeks. Southwest Airlines canceled more than 2,000 flights in mid-October.

“You can go back all the way to start of the summer travel season, we saw this roll across the airlines from United to American, and recently we saw Southwest,” said Skyler McKinley, a representative with AAA. “Every airline is struggling with the same factors. There’s also a lot of uncertainty. Right now, airlines are going above and beyond— allowing passengers to cancel their flights in the pandemic.”

Not only does American Airlines blame staffing shortages for the issues, but severe winds in its largest hub of Dallas Fort Worth

American Airlines expects to have 1,800 flight attendants to return this week, and more to be on the job by Dec. 1.

With the holiday season around the corner, experts are aware of the worries travelers have. But there is some good news, McKinley says.

“Right now is where you want to see the hiccups,” McKinley said. “Because seeing them now generally is a sign that the airlines are balancing for everything else. When they know they’ll have a surge in demand, they’re going be able to rise to meet it.”

According to Business and Economic Journalist Marc Stewart, airline apps and early ticket purchases will be a traveler's best friend.

“Take the first flight of the day, yes it may mean getting up early, but the airlines try to keep an online schedule first thing in the morning,” Stewart said. “If your flight is canceled or delayed, oftentimes you’ll be put on another flight or another connecting flight and use the app instead of waiting in line or on hold, if you go to the app on your phone the airlines have already provided you another option.”

Mckinley said problems with air travel won't be fixed overnight. He expects them to persist for the next couple of years.

New safety measures are now in place at airports across the country.

“Anyone in the airport must wear a mask at all times while in the airport,” said Stacey Stegman, spokesperson for Denver International Airport.

While travel is down, new safety options are going up after vending machines offering personal protective equipment arrived.

“It’s new, it’s different and it’s a stark reminder of the world that we are in today and traveling under these circumstances,” Stegman said.

The price for PPE is $6 for two surgical masks with hand sanitizer and a tray cleaner, and $12 for two KN95 masks, hand sanitizer and a tray cleaner.

“If it takes the masks to get our concerts back, then I’m all for it,” said Brad Michaels, who has traveled the world as drummer for the band Good Charlotte.

Michaels flies private as often as possible but while traveling commercial, he says protection is a priority.

“I think it’s a good thing,” he said of PPE vending machines. “I think the price is a little ridiculous: two masks for $6 but we’re at the airport, so.”

Now more airports like McCarran International in Las Vegas are also carrying these PPE vending machines.

In New York City, PPE vending machines have hit the streets and have even gone underground.

David Edelman is with Rapid Mask2Go. He noticed a demand for PPE and installed these vending machines across the city with plans to expand across the East Coast.

“This was a cost effective, quick way to get more masks in the hands of as many people as possible,” he said.

Because whether on the subway or in the sky, this is the new norm of traveling during the COVID-19 era.

Related video above: Air travel picks up as more people get vaccinated

Would-be travelers are crooning a new theme song: "Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away."

Bottled up yearnings to visit people and places — perhaps even some Frank Sinatra made famous — have vaccinated folks (and a bunch who aren't) setting pandemic-era records at U.S. airport checkpoints.

In the European Union, the UK and other corners of the globe, officials are currently considering ways to restart international travel this summer.

When that occurs, cinch up your seat belt — traveler numbers will soar.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently eased its domestic and international travel guidance for vaccinated people, stating that travelers who are fully vaccinated "can travel safely within the United States" but noted a greater risk for international travel.

However, the agency is still discouraging nonessential travel due to rising numbers of COVID-19 infections. Driven by extremely contagious variants that have invaded all 50 states, the virus is currently hitting healthier 30- to 50-year-olds hard.

Globally, COVID-19 cases climbed for the sixth consecutive week as of April 6, according to World Health Organization statistics, with over 4 million new cases and 71,000 deaths.

Is it truly safe to travel by air right now, even if you're fully vaccinated?

Related video: Passengers begin returning to airports

Case count, masks and ventilation are key

"There are three factors to consider," said Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, who studies the airborne transmission of COVID-19.

"How prevalent is the virus in the population? If it's highly prevalent, then there's a good chance that someone who is infected is going to be on a plane," Marr said.

Why does that matter if you're vaccinated? "We're still learning how effective the vaccines are against variants of the virus," the CDC said recently, as well as "how long COVID-19 vaccines can protect people."

In addition, real world studies of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines show they are still 90% protective against the coronavirus — but that means it's still possible to get infected.

"Is everyone masked? That's also very important," said Marr, who is world renowned for her 2011 discovery that influenza can hover in air for an hour via respiratory microscopic droplets called aerosols.

"Vaccinated people could potentially still get COVID-19 and spread it to others," according to the CDC, as respiratory droplets fall onto surfaces or float in the air. "We're still learning how well COVID-19 vaccines keep people from spreading the disease," the agency added.

Early in the pandemic, according to a CDC investigation, an unmasked passenger with no symptoms infected 12 fellow business class travelers, two people seated in economy and one crew member on a 10-hour international flight.

Last summer, 13 asymptomatic people on an international flight into Ireland infected another 46 people in six regions of the country, despite some use of masks on the plane. And in September, nine people tested positive after a flight from India to New Zealand, despite the fact that masks were mandatory on the plane.

"The risk for on-board transmission of SARS-CoV-2 during long flights is real," the CDC investigation stated. "Long flights not only can lead to importation of COVID-19 cases but also can provide conditions for superspreader events."

Still, a Harvard University report released last October concluded the risk of catching COVID-19 on an airplane is rare, as long as people are masked, the airport uses safety precautions and the planes have installed HEPA, or "high efficiency particulate air" filters. The HEPA filters are rated to remove 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria and other airborne particles with a size of 0.3 microns. COVID-19 is thought to be between 0.06 to 1.4 microns.

Which brings Linsey Marr to her third point: "Finally, air travel safety could be improved if airlines and manufacturers install and use HEPA filters properly in more planes. Proper filtration is a key to safe air travel."

What to do to fly more safely

While there may not be much you can do about CO2 levels or HEPA filtration (other than ask the airline and make your concerns known), experts say there are key actions you can take to make your flight safer — in addition to getting vaccinated as soon as you can.

Fly short distances.

"If the plane doesn't have HEPA filtration, and it's a short flight, under an hour, then you might be OK. But then it's even more important that people are masked the entire time," Marr said.

If your destination is further, Marr suggests driving part of the way and flying the rest.

"If you must fly, try to take flights with the fewest stops or layovers," the CDC advises. "Spending time in security lines and airport terminals ... can bring you in close contact with other people and frequently touched surfaces."

Plan your ride to the airport.

If you have to take an Uber, Lyft or taxi to the airport, make sure you, your family and the driver are all masked throughout the journey — and be sure to roll down the windows to encourage air flow, Allen said.

"We've done some modeling on this, we're showing that even rolling down the windows just a couple inches can really help with airborne transmission," Allen said. "And you want to put down the windows even if it's inclement weather. A little bit will really help."

Follow safety protocols.

Even fully vaccinated people need to continue to follow the triad of key safety steps, the CDC said: "Wear a mask over your nose and mouth, stay 6 feet from others and avoid crowds, and wash your hands often or use hand sanitizer."

Under the Biden Administration, masks are now mandatory on any form of public transportation, as well as transportation hubs such as airports and bus stations.

But people don't always comply on planes, as Marr experienced on a recent trip where flight attendants had to admonish passengers to stop removing masks.

Consistent masking is especially important if a plane doesn't have HEPA filtration and people are talking, Marr said.

"This is exactly when it's most important for people to be wearing a mask because talking produces more aerosols than just breathing," she said.

Do doublemask and watch the fit.

A CDC study found layering a cloth mask over a medical mask, such as a disposable blue surgical mask, created a tighter fit and blocked 92.5% of potentially infectious particles from escaping. Look for 2- to 3-ply mask made of a tight weave of 100% cotton, according to studies.

The mask should have a nose wire, the CDC says. Bend it tightly across the nose to keep the mask close to your face. That also helps with fogging if you wear glasses.

Stay away from bandanas and gaiter masks unless that's all that's available. A study last year found both types to be the least effective in terms of protection

Carry the essentials.

Along with that highly protective mask, you should bring disinfecting wipes and a 3-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer with greater than 60% ethanol or 70% isopropyl alcohol -- the level needed to kill most coronaviruses, according to the CDC.

Before you sit, use sanitizing wipes on your seat, tray table and arm rest on the plane, and don't forget your seat belt, the filtration nozzle and light buttons above your head, the video monitor and the back of the seat in front of you.

Bring your own ear buds, neck pillow and blanket if you think you need them, and don't forget to bring snacks from home you can eat quickly, to minimize the time you're unmasked. Dried fruit, nuts, or cheese and crackers are good choices. Most airlines have reduced meal service to a minimum.

Stay in your seat if you can.

Getting up and moving around puts you closer to others on the plane, and visiting the bathroom opens up a whole new set of potentially germ-covered things to touch. If you must take a bathroom break on the plane, have hand sanitizer at the ready.

What's best, experts say, is to prepare in advance by having your meals and bathroom breaks before or after the flight.

The airline industry’s recovery from the pandemic passed a milestone as more than 2 million people streamed through U.S. airport security checkpoints on Friday for the first time since early March 2020.

The Transportation Security Administration announced Saturday that 2.03 million travelers were screened at airport checkpoints on Friday. It was the first time in 15 months that the number of security screenings has surpassed 2 million in a single day.

Airline bookings have been picking up since around February, as more Americans were vaccinated against COVID-19 and – at least within the United States – travel restrictions such as mandatory quarantines began to ease.

The recovery is not complete. Friday's crowds were only 74% of the volume compared to the same day in 2019. However, the 2.03 million figure was 1.5 million more travelers than the same day last year, according to the TSA.

The 2-million mark represents quite a turnaround for the travel industry, which was hammered by the pandemic. There were days in April 2020 when fewer than 100,000 people boarded planes in the U.S., and the CEO of Boeing predicted that at least one major U.S. airline would go bankrupt.

Most of the airlines are still losing money. Southwest eked out a narrow first-quarter profit thanks to its share of $64 billion in federal pandemic relief to the industry, and others are expected to follow suit later this year.

The fear of large-scale furloughs has lifted. United Airlines, which lost $7 billion and threatened to furlough 13,000 workers last fall, told employees this week that their jobs are secure even when the federal money runs out in October.

That's because airlines like United are upbeat about salvaging the peak summer vacation season. International travel and business trips are still deeply depressed, but domestic leisure travel is roughly back to pre-pandemic levels, airline officials say.

The airlines are recalling employees from voluntary leave and planning to hire small numbers of pilots and other workers later this year.

Hotel operators say they too have seen bookings improve as vaccination rates rise.

Mike Gathright, a senior vice president at Hilton, said the company's hotels were 93% full over the Memorial Day weekend. He said the company is "very optimistic" about leisure travel over the summer and a pickup in business travel this fall.

"The vaccine distribution, the relaxed travel restrictions, consumer confidence — all of that is driving occupancy and improvement in our business," Gathright said.

Prior to the pandemic, TSA screened on average 2 million to 2.5 million travelers per day. The lowest screening volume during the pandemic was on April 13, 2020, when just 87,534 individuals were screened at airport security checkpoints.

By the middle of last month, TSA's average daily volume for screenings was approximately 65% of pre-pandemic levels.

As the summer travel season approaches, TSA is advising passengers to arrive at the airport with sufficient time to accommodate increased screening time as traveler volumes are expected to approach and in some cases exceed pre-pandemic levels at certain airports.