Dubai Airport handled 83.6 million travelers in 2016, new figures have shown, making it - still - the busiest in the world in terms of international passengers.
Dubai’s rise has been astonishing. The airport welcomed just 16 million fliers in 2002, meaning total growth in the last 16 years stands at 423 per cent.
While it sees more international traffic than any other airport - with Heathrow and Hong Kong second and third - in terms of total passenger numbers, it remains some way off the pacesetter. Thanks to its extensive domestic routes, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta
International has been the world’s busiest airport since 1998, with more than 101 million passengers passing through its terminals in 2015 – that’s the equivalent of the population of Ethiopia.
5) Amsterdam Airport Schiphol - 58.2m (2015)
The busiest routes from Amsterdam Airport - with its six runways - are to Heathrow, Barcelona, Paris, Rome and Gatwick. It is one of the world’s most elderly airports, having been established as a military airbase in 1916 and used by civilian aircraft since 1920.
4) Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport - 60.4m (2015)
The ninth busiest airport overall, Paris-Charles de Gaulle is fourth in terms of international passengers. Its busiest routes are to New York JFK, Heathrow, Barcelona El Prat and Dubai, while Air France is its biggest customer.
3) Hong Kong International Airport - 68.1m (2015)
Built on the island of Chek Lap Kok, on reclaimed land, Hong Kong International opened in 1998. It has grown in size by 153 per cent since 2002, when it handled just 27m passengers.
2) London Heathrow Airport - 71m (2016)
The busiest airport in Europe welcomed just over 30m fliers in 1985 - now that figure stands at more than 70m. Its shortage of runways makes further growth difficult. The busiest routes from Heathrow are to New York-JFK, Dubai, Dublin, Amsterdam and Hong Kong.
1) Dubai International Airport - 77.5m (2015)
As outlined above, Dubai remains the world’s busiest in terms of international passengers, and third busiest overall (behind Beijing Capital and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta).
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