"FAA: Atlanta Airport Is Nation's Busiest"

Thursday, January 3, 2008

FAA: Atlanta Airport Is Nation's Busiest
By DANIEL YEE
The Associated Press


ATLANTA (AP) - For the third year in a row, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta
International Airport has retained its title as the nation's busiest airport
in terms of flights, according to preliminary government data released
Wednesday.

The Atlanta airport logged 994,466 flights in 2007, up 1.8 percent from
976,447 flights in 2006, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Flights
include takeoffs and landings.

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.

The FAA only released preliminary data for what typically are the nation's
top three busiest airports - Atlanta, Chicago's O'Hare and Dallas-Fort Worth
International Airport, said spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.

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, with 41.35 million passengers in 2006, the latest data available
from the FAA. Chicago was second busiest with 36.82 million passengers in
2006.

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 to increase flights by Delta Air Lines Inc. and AirTran Airways,
which both have large air travel hubs at Hartsfield-Jackson, said airport
spokesman Herschel Grangent.

In recent years, O'Hare has faced limited flight capacity because of
federally-mandated flight restrictions. But a new north runway and runway
extension expected to open in November - when the federal restrictions will
be lifted - will add to the airport's ability to handle new flights, said
spokesman Gregg Cunningham.

Delta, which represented more than 70 percent of the total scheduled
passenger flight volume at Hartsfield-Jackson in 2007, plans for more growth
at the Atlanta airport this year with new international routes, said
spokeswoman Chris Kelly in a statement.

Tad Hutcheson, spokesman for Orlando, Fla.-based AirTran, said the Atlanta
airport's large passenger market within the metro Atlanta area and its
ability to handle connecting flights help Hartsfield-Jackson retain its top
ranking each year.

"What makes Atlanta work is ... you have the world's largest hub in Delta's
Atlanta hub. AirTran operates the world's largest low-cost carrier hub,"
Hutcheson said. "That's what makes Atlanta the world's busiest airport."

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.

Online:

Link to FAA's list of top 50 busiest U.S. airports in 2006

http://www.faa.gov/news/updates/busiest_airports/index.cfm

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