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Air travel is an essential part of the lives of hundreds of millions of people. Whether it’s heading to see a client, visiting family across the globe, or taking the kids to Disney World, these airports have become some of the busiest places in the world. In 2022, these airports handled the most passengers globally, based on data from FlightGlobal. Here are the top ten:
10. John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) is the busiest of New York City’s three airports (including Newark, which is in NJ). In 2022, over 55 million passengers passed through JFK. This is down from the over 62 million in 2019.
Hub: American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue®
9. Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG)
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport is France’s busiest airport and the ninth most transited airport globally, handling around 57 million passengers in 2022 (this is also down from 76 million in 2019).
Hub: Air France
8. London Heathrow Airport (LHR)
London Heathrow Airport is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the eighth globally, handling over 61 million passengers in 2022. LHR served almost 81 million in 2019.
Hub: British Airways, Virgin Atlantic
7. Istanbul Airport (IST)
Istanbul Airport replaced Istanbul Ataturk Airport. The airport handled over 64 million passengers last year. This is only four million down from the 68 million who flew through there in 2019. The figures FlightGlobal provided merge the two.
Hub: Turkish Airlines
6. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
Los Angeles International Airport is the sixth busiest airport globally. It handled around 66 million passengers in 2022. This did not yet recover to the 88 million seen in 2019.
Hub: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines
5. Dubai International Airport (DXB)
Dubai International Airport is the busiest airport in the Middle East and the fifth globally, handling around 66 million passengers in 2022 (down over 20 million from its 2019 numbers).
Hub: Emirates
4. Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
Chicago O’Hare International Airport is the fourth busiest globally, handling around 68 million passengers in 2022. This has also not caught up with the 84 million plus it served in 2019.
Hub: American Airlines, United Airlines
3. Denver International Airport (DEN)
Denver International Airport has returned to its 2019 levels with 69 million passengers served last year.
Hub: Frontier Airlines, United Airlines
2. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is the second busiest airport globally, handling around 73 million passengers in 2022 (down two million from 2019).
Hub: American Airlines
1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has held the title of the world’s busiest airport since 1998. In 2022, it handled approximately 94 million passengers, which is down from its 2019 peak of over 110 million.
Hub: Delta Air Lines
Anthony’s Take: I’ve been flying a lot more Delta and it seems that all roads lead to Atlanta. The airport tops the list every year and I don’t see this changing soon. With the exception of Dubai, I’ve been to all of these airports and know I’ll be back through them either for a visit or a connection.
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