Once again, Atlanta is the busiest airport in the world, which may come as no surprise.
According to a survey published by Airports Council International, about 93.7 million passengers passed through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in 2022, a 23.8% increase in passenger traffic from 2021.
Atlanta held the title of the busiest airport for 22 years in a row before losing it to Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) in China in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. In 2020, when the pandemic was at its worst, China's airports occupied seven of the top ten spots.
But, Atlanta's position as the busiest airport in the world returned in 2021.
The majority of ACI's list this year, like in 2021, was made up of airports in the United States. Denver International Airport (DEN) came in third, followed by Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
Denver had 69 million passengers last year, compared to about 73 million for Dallas-Fort Worth.
The other two American airports on the list were Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which came in at No. 6, and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD), which came in at No. 4.
Due to a domestic travel recovery that occurred more quickly than in other regions, U.S. airports have dominated ACI's rankings for the past two years.
In contrast, international airports made progress in 2022, making up half of the top 10. U.S. airports occupied eight of the top 10 spots in the ACI survey last year.
These airports represent a recovery in international travel, which has largely lagged behind domestic travel. They include London's Heathrow Airport (LHR), Dubai International Airport (DBX), Istanbul Airport (IST), Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL), and Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG).
Because of their robust domestic markets, U.S. airport hubs recovered more quickly, but now, according to Luis Felipe de Oliveira, director general of ACI World, "global hubs are joining upper rankings."
Although travel is still catching up to pre-pandemic levels, American airline CEOs predict that demand will remain robust until 2023.
Denver was the only airport on the list to have greater travelers in 2022 compared to 2019.
The most recent rankings indicate a significant step towards returning to pre-pandemic levels, said de Oliveira. "We continue to advance carefully despite many challenges that could impair the speed and scale of global air traffic recovery, though," he added.
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