It’s now official: Atlanta is the world’s busiest airport. Again…

Sep 17, 2019

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It’s official: The world’s busiest airport is in Atlanta.

Again.

More than 107 million passengers flew through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International in 2018, helping the airport claim the “world’s busiest” title for the 22nd consecutive year.

Atlanta outpaced No. 2 Beijing (PEK), which was the only other airport to see more than 100 million passengers, according to the count from Airports Council International (ACI).

The ACI’s numbers for busiest airports were first reported in March, though those figures were “preliminary.” ACI confirmed its final numbers on Tuesday, cementing Atlanta’s spot at the top in its World Airport Traffic Report.

The preliminary numbers almost always hold. That was true at the top this year, though revisions between the preliminary and final numbers did lead to one change. Istanbul (IST) finished at No. 16 while Seoul Incheon (ICN) finished No. 17, reversing their positions from the preliminary March numbers.

Overall, the top three spots remained unchanged from a year ago, with Dubai (DXB) third behind Atlanta and Beijing. Los Angeles (LAX) jumped past Tokyo Haneda (HND) for the only shake-up in the top five.

The full list of the world’s 20 busiest airports is below.

1. Atlanta (ATL)

2018 passenger count: 107.4 million, up 3.3%

2017 rank: 1

2. Beijing (PEK)

2018 passenger count: 101 million, up 5.4%

2017 rank: 2

3. Dubai, United Arab Emirates (DXB)

2018 passenger count: 89.1 million, up 1%

2017 rank: 3

4. Los Angeles (LAX)

2018 passenger count: 87.5 million, up 3.5%

2017 rank: 5

5. Tokyo Haneda (HND)

2018 passenger count: 86.9 million, up 4.4%

2017 rank: 4

6. Chicago O’Hare (ORD)

2018 passenger count: 83.2 million, up 4.3%

2017 rank: 6

7. London Heathrow (LHR)

2018 passenger count: 80.1 million, up 2.7%

2017 rank: 7

8. Hong Kong (HKG)

2018 passenger count: 74.5 million, up 2.6%

2017 rank: 8

9. Shanghai (PVG)

2018 passenger count: 74 million, up 5.7%

2017 rank: 9

10. Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG)

2018 passenger count: 72.2 million, up 4%

2017 rank: 10

11. Amsterdam (AMS)

2018 passenger count: 71.1 million, up 3.7%

2017 rank: 11

12. New Delhi (DEL)

2018 passenger count: 69.9 million, up 10.2%

2017 rank: 16

13. Guangzhou, China (CAN)

2018 passenger count: 69.7 million, up 5.9%

2017 rank: 13

14. Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)

2018 passenger count: 69.5 million, up 7.8%

2017 rank: 14

15. Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)

2018 passenger count: 69.1 million, up 3%

2017 rank: 12

16. Istanbul, Turkey (IST)

2018 passenger count: 68.36 million, up 6.6%

2017 rank: 15

17. Seoul Incheon, South Korea (ICN)

2018 passenger count: 68.35 million, up 10%

2017 rank: 19

18. Jakarta, Indonesia (CGK)

2018 passenger count: 65.7 million, up 4.2%

2017 rank: 17

19. Singapore (SIN)

2018 passenger count: 65.6 million, up 5.5%

2017 rank: 18

20. Denver (DEN)

2018 passenger count: 64.5 million, up 5.1%

2017 rank: 20

Featured photo by Alberto Riva/TPG.

Ben Mutzabaugh is the Senior Aviation Editor and heads TPG’s airline coverage. Ben joined The Points Guy in March 2019 after nearly 19 years at USA Today, where he launched the long-running, industry-leading Today in the Sky blog in 2002.

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