NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- As summer officially draws to a close, thousands of travelers passed through Charleston International Airport (CHS) over the weekend for one last vacation.

According to airport officials, more than 43,000 passengers passed through the security checkpoint at CHS between Aug. 31 and Sept. 4.

That is approximately 15% more passengers than traveled through CHS during the same time last year, officials said.

“With the Labor Day holiday dubbed as the “unofficial end of the summer travel season,” we anticipated our numbers would be above last year, and they were,” said Elliott Summey, Charleston International Airport Executive Director and CEO. 

The Labor Day boom comes on the heels of record-setting travel at airports across the country, including in Charleston.

Despite several expansion projects already in the works, airport officials are eyeing additional improvements including building a new concourse, expanding the ticket hall, and building a new parking garage.

“Our challenge now is to stay ahead of the growth,” Summey added. “We are doing that by looking at our facilities and making plans for future expansion of our parking facilities and the terminal’s ability to accommodate additional airlines that can offer our passengers even more great travel destinations.”

There are currently 13 airlines that offer service to and from Charleston International Airport.