America, where, as is commonly believed, the first airplane appeared, and today is the most aviation country in the world. They love airplanes, value their own achievements in aircraft construction and respect aviators. According to statistics, out of the 50 busiest in 2021, fifteen lines are occupied by US airports. Of the top hundred, sixteen today are American, and no other country can compare with this country in terms of the number of air harbors. Due to the huge number of carriers, competitive fuel prices, and the breadth of airfield coverage, the United States occupies a leading position in the volume of air travel in the world.
How many airports are there in the States
If you look at America's airports on a Yandex or Google map, you can easily see that they literally cover the entire country. Some of them serve flights to Russia. You can roughly estimate how many large air harbors there are in the following diagram.
The largest American airports are equipped with the latest science and technology. Innovations are introduced on a national scale, and huge sums are allocated for development from local and federal budgets. Last but not least, this is why, for most Americans, there is no question of choosing a mode of transport for travel.
The Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) website can answer the question, how many airports are there in the United States. Today, the country has over 13 thousand passenger and commercial air harbors, of which about 1950 are large and at least 94 international.
Rating of American airports
According to polls of Americans, analysis of requests on the Internet and the number of tickets purchased, the most popular are traditionally the air harbors of New York, San Francisco, Miami, Washington and other international airports in the United States.
But the hub doesn't always make it to the top lists due to the quality of service or the priorities of passengers. It is necessary to take into account industry indicators that are calculated at the end of the year.
The annual ratings are compiled by the Airports Council International or Airports Council International (ACI) - the global trade office of all the world's air hubs. And below are the largest US airports in terms of passenger traffic.
Hartsfield – Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, named after the first African American mayor, has been the busiest in the world for the past 20 years. The Air Transport Research Society (ARTS) has ranked the hub as the most efficient airport in the past 15 years. As an international airport, it ranks seventh in the United States.
Built in 1925, the airfield from a provincial air terminal with one runway has now turned into a huge ultra-modern complex with an average monthly passenger traffic in the region of 9 million passengers.
The development program implemented in 2021 is estimated at $ 9 billion.In 2021, over 107 million passengers passed through the airport terminals.
There are 196 gates, located in six halls, and three runways, serving about 900 thousand take-offs and landings annually. Has its own overground metro station.
Los Angeles International Airport
Los Angeles International Airport is the second busiest in the States and the fourth in the world. The first hangar on the site of a modern airfield complex was built in 1929, and today passengers are served by 9 terminals.
The annual passenger traffic in 2021 exceeded 87 million passengers. Four parallel runways provide about 700 thousand takeoffs and landings of airliners per year.
The main and only terminal with its own name (The Tom Bradley International Terminal) is currently being modernized as part of a $ 1.9 billion program. After the implementation of an innovative project, the construction with a total area of 365 thousand sq. m will be able to serve 4.5 thousand passengers per hour.
It also has its own metro station. In addition, it is planned to commission an electrified railway line for the delivery of passengers.
Chicago O'Hare International Airport
O'Hare International Airport in Chicago is named after Edward Henry O'Hare, a World War II ace. The node is the largest in northwestern Illinois. Until 2005, he topped the list of the best in the world in terms of workload. Today, according to this indicator, it is considered the third in the United States and the sixth in the world.
In 2021, passenger traffic amounted to 83 million passengers, over 867 thousand flights were served.
Until 2007, the airport with five terminals and four runways was repeatedly voted the best in North America by readers of Business Traveler Magazine. The hub accepts aircraft from 60 foreign airports, and the largest number of representative offices of the world's largest airlines is concentrated on its territory.
In 2021, the mayor's office approved a modernization program with a total budget of $ 85 billion. By 2021, it is planned to increase the airport's main indicators by 40-60%. It will also be home to North America's first Global Alliance Hub - one of five in the world.
Dallas / Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas / Fort Worth International Airport opened in 1973. Today it is the busiest in the state of Texas, the fourth largest in the United States and the fifteenth in the world. Today it is the largest airfield complex in the world, built on an area of 62 hectares.
The airport has seven runways, five terminals with 155 exits and serves more than 190 destinations around the world. In the future, there is the possibility of commissioning up to 13 terminals with 260 air gates. The service personnel numbers over 60 thousand employees.
The terminal modernization program, completed in 2021, is estimated at $ 2.7 billion. In 2021, 667 thousand flights were served here with a total passenger traffic of over 69 million passengers.
According to the American logistics publication Air Cargo World, it is the best cargo hub in the world today.
Denver International Airport
Denver International Airport was opened in February 1995, and its cost at that time was $ 4.8 billion. Located on an area of 140 square meters. km, it is the largest airport in America and the second in the world. One of the four lanes is the longest (4.8 km) in the country used for civil purposes.
Today, the Denver hub is the fifth busiest airport in the United States and twentieth in the world. Passenger traffic in 2021 amounted to 64.5 million passengers, and the number of served flights exceeded 600 thousand.
The airport was being built with the possibility of expansion ─ construction of six more lanes and a fourth terminal. The runways of Denver airport are located in the form of a swastika, the rays of which from the terminals diverge in all directions of the world, which significantly reduces the formation of queues of airliners before takeoff. This makes the hub one of the most efficient in the world.
Currently, two modernization programs are being implemented: a five-year one, calculated until 2021, according to which the airport's performance will increase significantly, and a long-term one - until 2035, involving the construction of new lanes.
Interestingly, there are two conspiracy theories associated with the airport. For example, the main terminal displays four paintings by Leo Tanguma, symbolizing the fight against racial genocide. Certain details, such as dead girls in coffins, a snow leopard and a giant soldier in a gas mask, can shock the viewer's imagination. Some believe that the paintings represent hints of a reorganization of the world order and the establishment of a world government.
Another theory concerns the huge area and underground premises, which can allegedly be used as a concentration camp.
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F Kennedy International Airport, operated by the City Halls of New York and New Jersey, opened in 1947 on the site of the golf course it got its name from (Idlewild). The current name appeared in 1963, a month after the assassination of the 35th President JF Kennedy. The airport then received new codes IATA (JFK), ICAO (KJFK), as well as a regional code.
The hub is located in the Kunis area in southeastern New York, twenty kilometers southeast of Manhattan. It is the sixth busiest in the States and 22nd in the world.
It is the main international air gate of the country, through which 15 to 20% of all international flights pass. About 90 airlines fly here.
Today the airport has two runways, six terminals with 125 air gates and a car parking for 15 thousand spaces. In 2021, passenger traffic amounted to almost 62 million passengers, and the number of served flights reached 455.5 thousand.
San Francisco International Airport
San Francisco International Airport, erected in 1927 on a pasture for livestock, in 2007 was the first in the world to receive the flight of the largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380.
Today the airport is the largest in the San Francisco Bay Area, the second in California and the seventh in terms of passenger traffic in the United States. In the world ranking in 2021, it moved one line down, taking the 25th position with an indicator of 57.7 million passengers.
Due to the high level of service, the airport with four terminals and four runways has been repeatedly recognized by Americans as one of the best.
The BART Suburban Subway Station provides direct access to downtown San Francisco and the suburbs. Opened in 2003, the automated transport system AirTrain allows passengers to move freely between terminals, one of which houses an aviation museum.
Plans to extend the strips deeper into the bay are currently facing opposition from community organizations concerned with the destruction of marine habitats and deteriorating water quality.
Seattle – Tacoma International Airport
The international airport, located between the cities of Seattle and Tacoma, is the largest commercial airport in the northwestern United States and in the state of Washington. The history of the airport began in 1944. Immediately after the end of World War II, it was opened for commercial operations, and began its first regular flights in 1947.
This is the base of the company that produces the famous Boeings, as well as the main hub of the main airline Alaska Airlines, which connects the country with the state of Alaska.
At the end of 2021, the airport took the 8th place in the American and 29th - in the international ratings. 49 million passengers passed through the only terminal in 2021, and three runways provided 438 thousand take-offs and landings.
McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas
McCarran International Airport is the main commercial airport in the Las Vegas Valley, Nevada. The hub, built in 1942 in the beautifully named Paradise and launched commercial flights in 1948, is now the ninth busiest hub in the United States and the thirtieth busiest in the world.
In 1997, it was the first American airport to introduce the modern automated resource sharing system CUTE. In 2003, CUSS was the first to use self-service check-in kiosks in the United States. The airport was one of the first in the world to provide its passengers with free Wi-Fi (in 2005).
It currently has two passenger terminals and four runways, which in 2021 served almost 50 million passengers and about 540 thousand flights. On the territory there is an aviation museum and, which is symbolic, a gambling zone.
Charlotte Douglas International Airport
Charlotte / Douglas International Airport, located in Charlotte, North Carolina, was commissioned in 1935. It received its modern name in 1982 in honor of the former mayor of the city, Ben Douglas. It is currently the main transit hub for US Airways and serves over 135 domestic and international routes.
There are four runways on the territory, one passenger terminal with an area of 548 thousand square meters, divided into four concourses (distribution halls for passengers) with 60 gates (gates), and a huge parking lot for 26.7 thousand places.
In 2021, the airport became the ninth busiest airport in the United States and 37th in the world. Passenger traffic amounted to almost 46.5 million passengers, 550 thousand flights were served.
Considering that the average flight duration to any point in the United States does not exceed two hours, the airport has good prospects for development on domestic routes.
Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport, which opened in 1945, is today Florida's main air gateway to Latin American destinations, and also plays a leading transit role in the south of the country due to the growing tourist flow.
At the end of 2021, the hub was ranked 13th in the US and 43rd in the world ranking in terms of occupancy, serving 45 million passengers and 416 thousand flights.
The infrastructure includes four runways, a single sectorized terminal with 131 gates, and one of the world's largest cargo complexes with 51,000 m2 of storage space.
One of the best ground transportation systems in the United States, it connects a subway station, the Metrobus network and Tri-Rail commuter trains.
Conclusion
If you are asked which city in America is the largest airport, the answer is unequivocal ─ Atlanta, although it is not the largest in size. If you take into account the area, of course, this is Denver, and the largest international airport is in New York.
Although these figures do not interest passengers at all. Any American airport will provide maximum comfort and pleasure to the traveler. Russians are more interested in airports that allow direct flights to the United States. First of all, these are New York and Washington.
It is worth noting that you cannot reach some places without transfers, if you want to. For example, in North, South Dakota, Idaho or Wyoming, you will first have to select an available point on the coast, and then look for a connection to your final destination. The main thing is that there is a desire, and the means allow.
