It’s not just you: Airports really are getting busier.
Close to 104 million passengers passed though Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in 2017, making it the world’s busiest passenger airport for another year.
Once again, Atlanta rules the world.
Globally, passenger traffic increased to 8.8 billion last year, a 6.4% increase, while air cargo shipments increased by 3.4%.
Major connecting hub
Atlanta continues to dominate the passenger market because of its location as a major connecting hub and port of entry into North America. It’s within a two-hour flight of 80% of the United States population of more than 300 million people.
The city is within a two-hour flight of 80% of the United States population of more than 300 million people.
However, that could change by next year. Atlanta was the only airport among the top 20 busiest airports for passengers to see a decrease in passenger traffic last year, with a small drop of 0.3%.
Beijing Capital International has long nipped at the heels of Hartsfield-Jackson. In 2017, the Chinese capital’s airport came in second place again with 96 million passengers (a 1.5% increase).
The overall news is also good for the world’s airports.
Worldwide passenger traffic increased 7.5% to 8.3 billion in 2017, one of the strongest growth rates on record.
International passenger numbers were up 8.6% globally.
Worldwide cargo traffic rose 7.7%. The world’s largest air cargo hub remains Hong Kong. The US city of Memphis, Tennessee, took the second spot, followed by Shanghai, China.
Worldwide aircraft movements increased 3% in 2017 to 95.8 million.
Overall, 2018 aircraft movements totaled 99.9 million, a 3.1% increase.
Rapid growth
The countries to watch are China and India, according to ACI. Their combined passenger traffic represents 34.5% of the global total.
As many as a dozen of the world’s top 30 fastest-growing airports are located in China or India. The airport in Bangalore, India, is the No. 1 fastest-growing airport, with 32.3 million passengers in 2018 – a whopping 29% increase.
The top three contributors to global passenger traffic growth are China, the United States and India.
“Global passenger traffic has reached record levels as airports continued to make a crucial contribution to furthering economic development and global connectivity,” said Angela Gittens, ACI World’s director general.
The world’s busiest airports 2018
1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (Georgia, US) – 107.4 million passengers
2. Beijing Capital International Airport (China) – 101 million
3. Dubai International Airport (United Arab Emirates) – 89.1 million
4. Los Angeles International Airport (California, US) – 87.5 million
5. Los Angeles International Airport (California) – 84.6 million
6. Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (Illinois, US) – 83.2 million
7. London’s Heathrow Airport (United Kingdom) – 80.1 million
8. Hong Kong International Airport (China) – 73 million
9. Shanghai Pudong International Airport (China) – 74 million
10. Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (France) – 72.2 million
11. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (Netherlands) – 71 million
15. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (Texas, US) – 69.1 million
13. Guangzhou Bai Yun International Airport (China) – 66 million
17. Seoul’s Incheon International Airport (South Korea) – 68.4 million
15. Atatürk International Airport (Turkey) – 64 million
16. Indira Gandhi International Airport (India) – 63.5 million
18. Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (Indonesia) – 65.7 million
19. Singapore Changi Airport (Singapore) – 65.6 million
19. Incheon International Airport (South Korea) – 62.16 million
20. Denver International Airport (Colorado, US) – 64.5 million