"Two US Cities Claim to Be Busiest Airport"

Friday, February 14, 2003

Two US Cities Claim to Be Busiest Airport
By Paul Simao 


ATLANTA (Reuters) - Atlanta on Friday staked its claim as home to the
world's busiest airport for the fourth consecutive year -- at least in the
number of passengers. 

Officials at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport said the airfield had
handled about 76.8 million passengers in 2002, 10.3 million more than main
rival O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. 

They said that Hartsfield, which is home to No. 3 U.S. carrier Delta Air
Lines Inc. and low cost carrier AirTran Airways, saw its passenger numbers
rise from 75.9 million in 2001 during a year in which O'Hare and other major
U.S. airports saw declines and the airline industry posted record losses. 

AirTran is a unit of AirTran Holdings Inc. 

"This demonstrates Atlanta's strength in the marketplace and is a direct
result of hard work and commitment from our hub carriers, Delta Air Lines
and AirTran Airways," said Ben DeCosta, general manager of Hartsfield. 

DeCosta, however, failed to mention that Atlanta's bragging rights are
sharply contested. 

Chicago's O'Hare was actually the busiest airport in the world last year
when takeoffs and landings were measured. O'Hare handled a record 922,787
flights last year, about 30,000 more than at Hartsfield, according to the
Federal Aviation Administration. 

O'Hare is the main hub for UAL Corp's bankrupt United Airlines. 

The modern-day North-South duel traces its roots back to 1999 when
Hartsfield first surpassed O'Hare in total number of flights, a perch that
the Chicago airport had occupied for 38 years. O'Hare recovered the top slot
two years later. 

The rivalry between the two airports looks set to continue for many years to
come. 

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is pushing for a $6.6 billion expansion of
O'Hare, a project that calls for construction of a new runway beginning next
year. 

Hartsfield also is moving ahead with its own $5.4 billion expansion, which
includes construction of a fifth runway, a new international terminal,
enhanced road and rail access and expanded parking facilities.


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