Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport again handled the most passengers of any airport in the world in 2018 -- but Beijing followed close behind, and Chicago O'Hare took the title for the most flights in the world.
The Atlanta airport has been the busiest in the world measured by passenger counts since 1998, and last year handled 107.4 million passengers.
But for the first time, another airport also topped 100 million passengers in a year: Beijing Capital International Airport, as confirmed in a ranking released Wednesday by industry group Airports Council International.
The 100 million mark was a distinction previously held only by Atlanta since 2015. But Beijing Capital is growing faster than Hartsfield-Jackson.
“We are going to continue to double our efforts to retain our title,” said Hartsfield-Jackson general manager John Selden at an Atlanta city council transportation committee meeting Wednesday morning.
Other airports are the world’s busiest by different measures. Chicago O’Hare had the most flights with 903,747 to Atlanta’s 895,682.
It's not the first time in recent years that O'Hare has been No. 1 in flight counts -- Chicago also bested Atlanta by that measure in 2014.
In 2018, Airports Council International rankings also show that Dubai International Airport had the most international passengers, while Hong Kong International Airport handled the most cargo traffic.
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