Atlanta airport busiest in U.S.
ATLANTA — For the third year in a row, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has retained its title as the airport with the most flights in the nation, according to preliminary government data released Wednesday.
The figures aren’t complete for lower-ranking airports, such as McCarran International in Las Vegas. But the FAA expects McCarran to remain in fifth place or drop slightly in relation to other airports. McCarran is sixth-busiest in the country in passenger volume.
Although McCarran is projected to log about a 4 percent increase in the number of passengers arriving and departing in 2007, preliminary FAA figures show fewer flights than in 2006, suggesting airlines are succeeding in increasing the number of occupied seats per flight, or load factor. It could also suggest airport officials in Las Vegas have succeeded in encouraging private plane and jet pilots to use smaller airports in North Las Vegas and Henderson, as opposed to adding to congestion at McCarran.
The Atlanta airport logged 994,466 flights in 2007, up 1.8 percent from 976,447 flights in 2006, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Takeoffs and landings are counted.
Its rival, Chicago O’Hare International Airport, was listed second busiest, with 935,000 flights in 2007. That number was down 2.4 percent from the 958,643 flights it had in 2006, the FAA said.
Atlanta and Chicago have run neck-and-neck in recent years to claim the title of the nation’s — and therefore, the world’s — busiest airport. Atlanta already claimed to be the world’s busiest airport in terms of passengers. The FAA does not maintain passenger statistics.
Atlanta airport officials said Hartsfield-Jackson’s increased flights in 2007 came from growing demand for air travel in the metro Atlanta area and efforts by Delta Air Lines and Air Tran Airways, which both have large air travel hubs at the Hartsfield-Jackson.
"Air Tran’s domestic growth strategy is working as is Delta’s international strategy, which should help us remain a prominent connecting point," said spokesman Herschel Grangent.
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport was ranked third, with 686,711 flights in 2007, down 2.3 percent from 702,722 flights in 2006, the FAA said.