airports

Int’l Women’s Day Aviation Round-Up

March is Women’s History Month and March 8 is International Women’s Day.

Here’s how some airports and aviation museums and others marked the day.

There’s a lot you can learn in a quick scroll.

Which airport was the busiest in 2023?

Yes, airports were very, very busy this year. But which one was the busiest in 2023?

That would be Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL), which topped the list put together by flight data company OAG.

OAG measures ‘busiest’ by airline capacity (seats), and during 2023 Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) had more than 61 million departing seats.

That is 12% over 2022 and just 3% below 2019 levels. ATL was also the busiest global airport in 2022 and 2019.

Full list of airports that made the Top 10 of World’s Busiest Airports in 2023

Here are the rankings of the busiest airports in the world, ranked by seats. You’ll see that 5 U.S. airports ranked in the Top 10.

  1. Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson International Airport (ATL)
  2. Dubai International Airport (DXB)
  3. Tokyo International Airport – Haneda (HND)
  4. London Heathrow Airport (LHR
  5. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
  6. Denver International Airport (DEN)
  7. Istanbul Airport (IST)
  8. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
  9. Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
  10. China’s Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN)

Traveling for Thanksgiving?

Are you traveling over this Thanksgiving holiday?

You won’t be alone. Not by a long shot.

AAA projects 55.4 million travelers will head 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday travel period. That’s an increase of 2.3% over last year and marks the third-highest Thanksgiving forecast since AAA began tracking holiday travel in 2000.

AAA expects 4.7 million people will fly over the Thanksgiving holiday.

That’s an increase of 6.6% compared to 2022 and the highest number of Thanksgiving air travelers since 2005.

Airport checkpoints will be busier than ever during this Thanksgiving holiday season, which begins Friday, Nov. 17, and concludes Tuesday, Nov. 28. And during that 12-day period, TSA expects to screen 30 million passengers.

Historically, the three busiest travel days around Thanksgiving are the Tuesday and Wednesday prior to Thanksgiving and the Sunday afterward. TSA expects to screen 2.6 million passengers on Tuesday, Nov. 21; 2.7 million passengers on Wednesday, Nov. 22 and 2.9 million passengers on Sunday, Nov. 26, which will likely be the busiest travel day.

TSA PreCheck

TSA says there are now more than 17.6 million passengers enrolled in TSA PreCheck, which represents 3.9 million more TSA PreCheck members than there were this time last year.

So don’t be surprised if the PreCheck lanes seem long at the airports you’ll be flying through this holiday season.

Study finds rise in overall airport satisfaction

There may still be a pilot shortage and plenty of issues causing airport terminals to be crowded and confusing.

However according to J.D. Power’s latest Airport study of North American airports, out today, travelers are feeling more satisfied with airports now than they were a year ago.

J.D. Power’s 2023 North America Airport Satisfaction Study, shows an uptick of 3 points (on a 1,000-point scale) this year, driven by improvements in three factors: terminal facilities; food and beverage and retail service; and baggage claim.

“While airports are doing a good job coping with the current issues, there is still more they could do to improve [the] passenger experience while also improving their own bottom lines,” said Michael Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at J.D. Power. “Happy passengers spend a lot more money at the airport, so ongoing efforts to spread passenger volumes throughout the day and deliver superior service at all customer touchpoints will be critical.”

Did your favorite airport shine?

The Airport Satisfaction Study measures overall traveler satisfaction with mega, large, and medium North American airports and looks at six factors (in order of importance):

terminal facilities;

airport arrival/departure; baggage claim;

security check;

check-in/baggage check;

and food, beverage & retail.

This year’s study was conducted from August 2022 through July 2023.

Here are the top rankings:

Mega Airports

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport ranked highest with 800 points (out of 1000),

Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (796), ranked second

And Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas ranked thrid (787).

Large Airports

Tampa International Airport ranks highest with a score of 832.

John Wayne Airport, Orange County (829) ranks second

And Salt Lake City International Airport (825) ranks third.

Of note among large airports is the ranking this year for New York’s LaGuardia Airport, one of the airports where recently completed construction and redevelopment projects have greatly improved the passenger experience.

LaGuardia Airport, which ranked last in passenger satisfaction in 2019, now ranks at the large airport segment average, tied with Kansas City International Airport, which just opened its shiny new terminal, and just below Portland International Airport, which is about to.

Medium Airports

For a second consecutive year, Indianapolis International Airport ranks highest among medium airports, with a score of 843.

Southwest Florida International Airport (839) ranks second and Ontario International Airport (834) ranks third.


Travel Tidbits from airports here and there

Flight attendant unions mark an anniversary

Shuffleboard (!) at United Airlines’ new DEN lounge

Sheep at London’s Gatwick Airport

Formula 1 car at Schiphol Airport

Pancakes for a cause at Vancouver Int’l Airport