The US has some of the biggest airports in the world. They are known for a high number of domestic and international flights. Both the East Coast and the West Coast offer excellent air travel opportunities. But you’ll also find some of the biggest US airports aren’t found in New York or Washington DC.
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10. Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Michigan
Image: Wikimedia / qwesy qwesy
This public area is an excellent air travel hub for citizens of Michigan and neighboring states. It has been the hub for more than 30 million locals who had to travel by airplane. It connects Michigan to 39 US states and over 30 other countries. If you plan to visit Chicago or if you plan to travel abroad from Michigan, this is going to be the main transport hub as you don’t have to travel to another large airport to get anywhere on the globe.
9. Charlotte Douglas International Airport, North Carolina
Image: Wikimedia / David Broad
If Delta is situated in Michigan, American Airlines calls Charlotte Douglass International Airport their home. This is one of the leading airports for the city of Charlotte. It is also one of the few US airports of this size that combines both commercial flights and military flights due to the large army presence in the state. Together, these equate to around 700 daily arrival and departures making the airport one of the busiest in the country.
8. San Francisco International Airport, California
United Airlines and Alaska Airlines call the San Francisco International Airport their home hub. It is the second-largest airport in the state of California (the first is Los Angeles International Airport). Apart from taking people to Alaska frequently, it’s also known for linking the continental US to exotic locations such as Hawaii. You can also travel all over the country from here and if you’re working in San Francisco’s IT industry, you are likely to travel directly to New York from this airport for all types of tech events.
7. O’Hare International Airport, Illinois
This busy airport is located just outside Chicago. You wouldn’t believe it but it averages 87 million passengers per year. Traveling fans from Chicago know it for its very low-cost tickets and airlines. Both Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines are calling this airport their home hub. But international flights are also frequent here. You can fly directly to destinations such as New Zealand, Australia, and Iceland form here. Over 2.500 flights depart and arrive here every single day.
6. Seattle-Tacoma, Washington
Alaska Airlines and Delta Airlines have the most flights at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport. You can fly directly to many US states from this airport. But international travel is also increasing in popularity at this location. If you want to visit Central America, you can fly to Mexico’s Guadalajara Airport. If you like to visit Asia, you also benefit from direct flights to Singapore, Beijing, and Tokyo.
5. McCarran International Airport, Nevada
Image: Flickr / Ken Lund
Frontier Airlines, JSX, Southwest Airlines, and Sun Country Airlines call the McCarran International airport their home. It features 4 runways and an automated people mover. You can travel internationally to almost any continent and large country in the world from here. Direct flights to Panama City are popular from the airport. But you can also fly to Frankfurt, Amsterdam, and London from here.
4. Dallas International Airport, Texas
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With excellent economic growth and tourism potential, Dallas offers its airport for nearly 80 million passengers per year. If you think this airport only connects Texas to the biggest cities in the country you are wrong. It offers nearly 300 local US destinations plus private services which can take you to even smaller airports. It also has more than 50 international destinations to take and receive passengers from.
3. John F Kennedy International Airport, New York
American Airlines and Delta Airlines call the John F Kennedy International Airport their home hub. The airport is the busiest in New York and it typically handles more than 60 million passengers each year. It has excellent international links with flights to Madrid, Geneva, Kyiv, Istanbul, or Abu Dhabi.
However, this airport has some of the best destinations and frequent links to international capitals which makes it the most recognized US airport abroad.
2. LAX, California
Image: Flickr / Glenn Beltz
Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Atlas Air, Delta Airlines, and United Airlines call this airport their home hub. Situated in busy Los Angeles, this airport is the biggest by the number of flights and destinations on the US West Coast and the third busiest in the world. It has nearly reached 90 million passengers per year. The busiest route from this airport is London Heathrow, Mexico, and Seoul. There are nearly 5 million passengers that travel to and from these destinations to LAX every year.
1. Hartsfield Airport, Georgia
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Situated in Atlanta Georgia, the Hartsfield Airport is the biggest in the US and the busiest in the world. Its excellent location made it the primary hub for many international flights to and from North America. It is also the home hub for Delta Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and Southwest Airlines.
More than 1.000 aeroplanes land or take-off from Hartsfield Airport every day. Its busy traffic hasn’t been generally associated with poor administration as it has won multiple awards for how well it handles this large influx of passengers.
Orlando in Florida is the busiest route from this airport. Almost 1 million passengers land or leave to Orlando every year from Hartsfield Airport. Fort Lauderdale is the second busiest route. Almost 800.000 passengers leave and arrive from New York’s La Guardia Airport from Hartsfield Airport.
International travel is also very popular here. Paris is the most sought after destination with almost 1 million passengers each year. Amsterdam, Cancun, London, and Toronto are also a popular destination with a combined passengers total of nearly 3 million per year. But the airport is also a popular gateway to exotic holiday destinations from the US. More than 300.000 people fly to and from the Bahamas using Hartsfield Airport, a route operated by Delta Airlines.
