As more people start to throw themselves at international travel, it’s wise to take note of just how busy an airport typically is before you transit through. From painfully long security lines to routine flight delays, how many passengers funnel through an airport each year generally indicates how much potential pain you’re in for should you not have an efficient plan in place.
A notably busy airport also means you’re more likely to run into some bumps along the way, from overworked staff who may or may not misplace your bags to queues that make grabbing a quick snack a daunting task. It’s then worth paying attention to this annual report by the Airports Council International (ACI), running through the top 10 busiest airports in the world for 2022 so you’re well aware of how thick things could get whether you’re taking off or touching down.
And it seems if you’re heading through Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL), you can expect to navigate a hefty crowd. According to the report, one of the major hubs for Delta Airlines is the world’s busiest airport with 93.7 million passengers transiting per year.
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ATL has been up there for the past few editions of this annual list, also nodding to the fact that it’s such an ideal gateway to other locations, particularly in the Southern States. In fact, half of this list is just US airports. Although, surprisingly, none of the airports around New York City has made the cut.
Dallas Fort Worth Airport (DFW) clocks in at #2 with 73.4 million passengers per year, followed by Denver, Colorado (DEN) and Chicago O’Hare (ORD). The only non-US airport making the top 5 is the major hub in Dubai, which welcomes 66.1 million passengers per year.
However, as most people who’ve been to Dubai can attest, the home of Emirates is relatively painless to navigate. This then reiterates the importance of how an airport is designed.
The ACI’s list also indicates that travel seems to be inching closer to pre-pandemic levels. The report also includes an interesting little state that the world’s busiest airports experienced a 51.7% gain over 2021. The reasons are obvious, of course, but it’s still encouraging to see travel coming back so quickly.
The World’s Busiest Airports In 2022
- Hartsfield-Jackson International, Georgia (ATL): 93.7 million passengers
- Dallas Fort Worth Airport (DFW), Texas (DFW): 73.4 million passengers
- Denver, Colorado (DEN): 69.3 million passengers
- Chicago O’Hare, Illinois (ORD): 68.3 million passengers
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates (DXB): 66.1 million passengers
- Los Angeles, California (LAX): 65.9 million passengers
- Istanbul, Turkey (IST): 64.3 million passengers
- London Heathrow, United Kingdom (LHR): 61.6 million passengers
- Delhi, India (DEL): 59.5 million passengers
- Paris Charles de Gaulle, France (CDG): 57.5 million passengers
