World aviation’s center of gravity is continuing its eastward shift, with China and India poised to feature among the world’s top three air-travel markets by 2020 as rising incomes make fares more affordable, Montreal-based ACI said. Asia Pacific is likely to have 3.5 billion passengers by 2036, adding more than double the forecast for North America and Europe combined, according to estimates by the International Air Transport Association.
New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport is no longer ranked among the 20 busiest in the world, thanks to the rush in Asia.
Among those pushing out JFK was New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport that made its debut on the table last year at No. 16, according to Airports Council International rankings released Monday. The Indian airfield was also the fastest-growing on the list, with passenger growth at 14 percent, followed by the 10 percent clip at China’s Guangzhou, which climbed two notches to No. 13.
Among those pushing out JFK was New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport that made its debut on the table last year at No. 16, according to Airports Council International rankings released Monday. The Indian airfield was also the fastest-growing on the list, with passenger growth at 14 percent, followed by the 10 percent clip at China’s Guangzhou, which climbed two notches to No. 13.
Close to 104 million passengers passed though Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in 2017, making it the world's busiest passenger airport for another year. That's according to preliminary 2017 data released Monday by Airports Council International.
Atlanta can thank its location as a major connecting hub and port of entry into North America for its continued dominance. The city is within a two-hour flight of 80% of the United States population of more than 300 million people.
However, that could change by next year. Atlanta was the only airport in the top 20 to see a decrease in passenger traffic last year, with a small drop of 0.26%.
Beijing Capital International has long nipped at the heels of the Hartsfield-Jackson and has held the top spot for two decades. This year, the Chinese capital's airport came in second place again with 94.4 million passengers (a 1.5% increase).
The overall news is also good for the world's airports.
Worldwide passenger traffic increased 6.6% in 2017, while international passenger numbers were up 8.4%.
Worldwide cargo traffic, including mail, rose 7.9%. The world's largest air cargo hub remains Hong Kong, China. The US city of Memphis, Tennessee, took the second spot, followed by Shanghai, China.
ACI's preliminary figures and percentages from the annual report are based on data from more than 1,200 airports worldwide.
We can see that Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta Airport and Singapore's Changi airport are included in world's top 20. What an achievement. Congratulations!
