Hartsfield-Jackson International Atlanta Airport (commonly known as Atlanta Airport) will take the top spot in passenger traffic in 2023, having held the top spot every year for more than two decades, except for 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dubai to top list of busiest airports by 2023. Photo: Kamran Jebreili/AP
According to the rankings, 2023 is the first year that Dubai International Airport holds the second position as assessed by the Airports Council International.
"Dubai International Airport served approximately 87 million passengers in 2023. This is an increase of 31% compared to the same period last year and 1% higher than in 2019. The airport helped connect 262 destinations in 104 countries with 102 international airlines," said Luis Felipe de Oliveira, Director General of Airports Council International (ACI).
"The strong rise in the rankings from No. 5 in 2022 to No. 1 in 2023 reflects the huge growth in Dubai's aviation industry as the rate of expansion in emerging and developing economies in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific is expected to be more than double that of other advanced economies in the coming decades. With 104.7 million passengers in 2023, Dubai International Airport is still able to handle capacity," said Mr. de Oliveira.
Mr. de Oliveira also said that ACI expects the Atlanta airport to serve about 110 million passengers by 2024 – bringing the airport back to 2019 passenger levels.
Globally, passenger traffic in 2023 is expected to increase by 27% from 2022, reaching an estimated 94% of 2019 levels, with domestic travel recovering faster from the pandemic, increasing by 20% in 2022 to reach nearly 97% of 2019 levels.
The world's largest domestic market, the United States, added four airports – all with significant domestic passenger growth – to the top 10 in 2023: Dallas/Fort Worth (No. 3), Denver (No. 6), Los Angeles (No. 8) and Chicago O'Hare (No. 9).
International tourism recovers strongly
However, in 2023, the international tourism market recorded a significant recovery, growing by 37% - reaching around 90% compared to 2019. And while Dubai is the second-largest international airport in terms of overall traffic, it is the number one airport in the world in terms of international passengers. In addition, the airport has developed into a destination in its own right.
London Heathrow also rose from eighth place in 2022 to fourth place last year. And Japan’s Tokyo Haneda also made a big jump – from 16th to fifth, largely because Japan has reopened. This is a welcome sign that Asia’s passenger numbers are returning after the Covid-19 pandemic, said De Oliveira.
In addition, Istanbul International Airport retained its position at No. 7, while New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport fell one place from No. 9 in 2022 to No. 10 last year. With its huge population and increasingly connected air network, India is a prime example of strong growth compared to other regions in the world.
“In the US, we have a variety of small, medium and large airports that are interconnected, but that’s not the case in many parts of the world,” de Oliveira said.
But it is growing rapidly in India, with Air India and IndiGo buying hundreds of planes and the government investing in more than 140 airports in the country.
According to preliminary figures from ACI, the total number of global passengers in 2023 is nearly 8.5 billion.
Global Outlook
The global outlook is “very positive” for continued growth, de Oliveira said. “In 2020, we thought it would take a long time for the aviation industry to recover, so the current trends are showing a very rapid recovery globally.”
By 2023, the system could be better able to handle the surge in demand than it was before the pandemic hit again, although some pressure points remain, including a shortage of air traffic controllers in the United States.
In addition, the high demand for new, more efficient aircraft will reduce fuel costs and increase sustainability. Recently, a number of factors, such as production slowdowns due to problems with Boeing aircraft and supply chain delays, have contributed to the backlog of orders. Mr. De Oliveira stressed that the supply chain issues have improved, but the backlog is still significant.
According to Mr. De Oliveira, everything that has happened due to the Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of being prepared for future problems and ACI is working with member airports to build more reasonable solutions in the future.
Here are the world's 10 busiest airports in 2023:
1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta , Georgia (ATL): 104.7 million passengers; up 11.7% from 2022.
2. Dubai , United Arab Emirates (DXB): 87 million passengers; up 31.7% from 2022.
3. Dallas/Fort Worth , Texas (DFW): 81.8 million passengers; up 11.4% from 2022.
4. London Heathrow , UK (LHR): 79.2 million passengers; up 28.5% from 2022.
5. Tokyo Haneda , Japan (HND): 78.7 million visitors; up 55.1% from 2022.
6. Denver , Colorado (DEN): 77.8 million passengers; up 12.3% from 2022.
7. Istanbul , Turkey (IST): 76 million passengers; up 18.3% from 2022.
8. Los Angeles , California (LAX): 75.1 million passengers; up 13.8% from 2022.
9. Chicago O'Hare , Illinois (ORD): 73.9 million passengers; up 8.1% from 2022.
10. Delhi , India (DEL): 72.2 million passengers; up 21.4% y/y by 2022./.
Source
Comment (0)