Largest Airports And Airlines In The United States

Landing approach to San FranciscoThe 30 largest airports and airlines in the United States of AmericaFurther information is provided on the 30 biggest airports in the United States of America. At John F Kennedy International Airport alone, 74 airlines operate and serve flights to and from 162 destinations.

We have also listed the 15 most important airlines of the country. United Airlines is leading here with a total of 365 flight destinations.› Transport + infrastructure in the United States of America› The largest airports worldwideBack to overview: United StatesListen to this page:

The largest airports in the USA

The USA is in many respects a country of gigantomania. Thus, US airports are often a bit larger than in other countries. In the statistics of international aviation organizations, numerous U.S. airports regularly appear among the world's largest, and the figures for passengers and cargo handled are quite impressive. Year after year, a significant portion of the top lists consist of U.S. airports. It is estimated that U.S. airports handle half of the world's air traffic.

The main reason for this is the immense size of the country. The economic centers are often far apart and therefore the easiest and quickest way to reach them is by plane. In general, there is a strong preference for air travel in the USA, as other means of transportation such as railroads are less developed compared to Europe or Asia. The USA also has a stronger base of trade relations than other countries. The need for a comprehensive air transportation infrastructure is therefore noticeably higher for both passenger and freight traffic.

IATANameCityAirlinesDestinations
JFKJohn F Kennedy International AirportNew York74162
LAXLos Angeles International AirportLos Angeles62149
ORDChicago O'Hare International AirportChicago46206
MIAMiami International AirportMiami43135
SFOSan Francisco International AirportSan Francisco42104
IADWashington Dulles International AirportDulles39126
ATLHartsfield Jackson Atlanta International AirportAtlanta37217
EWRNewark Liberty International AirportNewark35153
MCOOrlando International AirportOrlando35102
BOSLogan International AirportBoston34103
LASHarry Reid International AirportLas Vegas34133
SEASeattle–Tacoma International AirportSeattle3390
MSYLouis Armstrong New Orleans International AirportNew Orleans3339
DFWDallas Fort Worth International AirportDallas-Fort Worth33187
IAHGeorge Bush Intercontinental Houston AirportHouston32169
SANSan Diego International AirportSan Diego2955
HNLDaniel K Inouye International AirportHonolulu, Oahu2651
FLLFort Lauderdale Hollywood International AirportFort Lauderdale2597
PHXPhoenix Sky Harbor International AirportPhoenix2491
DENDenver International AirportDenver24169
DTWDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County AirportDetroit23135
TPATampa International AirportTampa2368
PHLPhiladelphia International AirportPhiladelphia23122
AUSAustin Bergstrom International AirportAustin1942
RDURaleigh Durham International AirportRaleigh/Durham1939
RSWSouthwest Florida International AirportFort Myers1933
MSPMinneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport / Wold–Chamberlain FieldMinneapolis18130
CLTCharlotte Douglas International AirportCharlotte18141
BWIBaltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall AirportBaltimore1772
STLSt. Louis Lambert International AirportSt Louis1660

Oldest airport in the world: College Park, Maryland

In fact, the history of aviation also began in the United States. The Wright brothers founded the world's first airport in College Park, Maryland, in 1909. In 1911, the first civilian flight took off from there. The airport has been in operation without interruption to this day. With only one runway of 2,607 feet in length, it does not play a significant role in international air traffic. However, the aviation museum, which has been attached to the airport since 1981, has regularly attracted numerous aviation enthusiasts since its opening. Among other things, the museum has its own hangar with 10 historic airplanes and helicopters.

Entering the USA

Those wishing to enter the USA from abroad first have to overcome a few hurdles. Entry is possible either with a visa or the electronic entry permit "ESTA." A passport is not sufficient. While the visa must be applied for in advance, ESTA is much easier in theory. Once issued, it allows any number of entries for up to 90 days each over a period of two years. But the ESTA must also be issued in advance, otherwise the airlines will refuse the departure from the home country.The controls at US airports are known to take comparatively long and are stricter than in many other countries. One of the reasons for this is that officials are given much more extensive discretionary powers. For example, the border official can decide to refuse or shorten a visa that has already been issued. Questioning and searches of cell phones and laptops have been permitted at any time for years for security reasons.Particularly fast passage through the immigration counters is possible in Boston, Dallas, Denver, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Washington D.C. Significantly more time should be allowed in Los Angeles, Miami and at JFK New York.

Freight volume

In 2021, a total of 46.00 billion ton-kilometers (= total mass transported in tons multiplied by kilometers traveled) of cargo was moved by air in the United States of America. John F Kennedy International Airport alone accounted for around 1.43 million metric tons.

The biggest airlines based in the United States of America

The largest airline in the country with scheduled passenger traffic and in terms of fleet size is United Airlines. In 2024, it carried 173.60 million passengers. It currently has a fleet of 1017 aircrafts. The main airlines for civil passenger traffic in the United States of America are:
IATANameCallsignFleet sizeDestinations
UAUnited AirlinesUnited1,017365
AAAmerican AirlinesAmerican985353
DLDelta Air LinesDelta978290
WNSouthwest AirlinesSouthwest801117
OOSkyWest AirlinesSkywest524528
ASAlaska AirlinesAlaska328128
B6JetBlue AirwaysJetblue289114
NKSpirit AirlinesSpirit Wings19391
MQEnvoy AirEnvoy165170
F9Frontier AirlinesFrontier Flight16285
9EEndeavor AirEndeavor142145
OHPSA AirlinesBlue Streak14071
G4Allegiant AirAllegiant127124
9KCape AirCair9831
HAHawaiian AirlinesHawaiian7431
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