Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport

[adelosky]

As for total passengers O'Hare had just over 74.9M passengers served (2007 Stats), while Hartsfield clocked in over 92.6M. Midway served around 18M passengers in 2007. You would have to add both passenger counts of both O'Hare and Midway to get the numbers that Hartsfield serves as a single entity.

As for NYC, ALL airports in their metro including JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark, served 107M in total (07' stats). So it would take all of the aiports in NYC to get close to the same number that Hartsfield does in one year. (and remember that is Three MAJOR airports vs. One)

Dallas is not even close, with only 56M Passengers served.

As for additional airports in the city of ATL, there are many.

Dekalb-Peachtree Airport is the 2nd busiest in the state of GA (including Macon, Savannah, and Columbus). That is VERY impressive when you consider the scope and size of the world's busiest airport is right down the street.

Outside of Hartsfield and Dekalb Peachtree, there are many other smaller ones. These are some that I know of, partly because my Dad used to be a pilot. (I might be missing one or two other private ones, so please anyone that knows please feel free to edit my list):

Dobbins Air Reserve Base (Atlanta Naval Air Station) (KMGE)***

Fulton County Airport at Charlie Brown Field (KFTY)

McCollum Field (KRYY)

Briscoe Field (KLZU)

Cartersville Airport (KVPC)

Mathis Airport (GA27)

Stoney Point Airfield

[A2]

Don't get me wrong. I wasn't saying that Atlanta wasn't the busiest airport or isn't as significant as it is. I just didn't know the numbers through the other cities, but seeing as they have multiple airports, I was interested in seeing how the combination of the major airports compares. There are so many suggestions that Atlanta needs a second airport because the one we have is almost TOO busy and that was the only reason I thought some other cities might have more daily traffic.

Lol, no worries adelosky. I am just a data geek and your post helped to get some hard data to the thread. It is great discussion material and what makes UP a great forum for us to debate freely and respectfully. I think we need to be prodded to ask questions and provide stats when asked. If not, we become pumpers of misinformation, which serves nobody, but the pumpers who like to see themselves in writing acting as if whatever they spew is the Gospel.

A2

ps---Keep up the great posts, because your comments are actually thought provoking, and help us all to learn even more.

[j.midtown]

Don't get me wrong. I wasn't saying that Atlanta wasn't the busiest airport or isn't as significant as it is. I just didn't know the numbers through the other cities, but seeing as they have multiple airports, I was interested in seeing how the combination of the major airports compares. There are so many suggestions that Atlanta needs a second airport because the one we have is almost TOO busy and that was the only reason I thought some other cities might have more daily traffic.

Actually, to be precise, the discussions of a second airport are based on the region's growth projections that indicate demand will grow outstrip Hartsfield's capacity in the future - something like 2025. HJAIA is not too busy today and can continue to increase traffic in the near future, but it's a reasonable position that it makes sense to add capacity (e.g. a second airport) before you actually need it and of course, major airports are not built in a day.

[Jim856796]

A sixth runway may be proposed for the Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. If there is a sixth runway, it is to be located just to the north of the new fifth runway. I don't know if that proposal will go forward.

[Martinman]

Here's a test of the people mover connecting the airport with the new rental car center. The new facility opens in November.

[Lady Celeste]

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has set a new record. I am constantly amazed at how efficient this airport is inspite of being the world's busiest airport.

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data, Hartsfield-Jackson handled 88,408 flight operations last month, and set a new single-day record with 3,125 flight operations on July 13, making it the busiest day ever at Hartsfield-Jackson.

WOW!

Anyway, you can read the specifics here:

Hartsfield-Jackson sets flight record

[Lady Celeste]

The world's busiest airport and the world's largest airline have inked a tentative deal that will keep the airline based from the airport. This is great news as the airport has been a catalyst for growth in the Atlanta area since before I was born. Delta is a great corporate citizen and I am glad that the city and airport authority did whatever it took to have a win win situation for everyone. It benefits Atlanta to have a finiancially secure Delta Airlines.

Read the article here:

Atlanta and Delta strike a tentative agreement to keep Delta at the airport through 2017.

[Lady Celeste]

Flights to commence between Atlanta and Cuba!

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport said it has received federal approval to serve as a port of entry for charter flights restricted to those with "purposeful travel" to and from Cuba.

This is great news.

Read more here:

Atlanta to Cuba

[Lady Celeste]

This is great news for the aviation buffs:

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport said Korean Air will begin flying the A380 super jumbo jet to Atlanta as early as January 2013. I believe...as well as does the general manager of HJAIA...that this

will further enhance Atlanta's reputation as a world-class city and gateway to the United States.

The airport is near completion on $30 million worth of improvements to accommodate the large aircraft. The airport is a true treasure for the city of Atlanta and the state of Georgia.

[Lady Celeste]

The new $1.4 billion international terminal expansion opens at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport today. This new addition will be called Concourse F. The first flight will occur shortly after opening and be a departure for Tokyo...followed shortly thereafter by an arrival from Dublin, Ireland.

Edited May 16, 2012 by Lady Celeste

[Martinman]

Here's some pictures courtesy of Atldlff

Aerial view of International Terminal & Concourse F

Upper Level Entrance to International Terminal

Concourse F Customs / Border Control

[Lady Celeste]

Those are some superb photos Martinman. I'm surprised others were so mum about this new addition. The airport is an economic juggernaut and is responsible for more than 53,000 jobs. The new addition is reported to be able to add and additional 1000 jobs. Also, the international implications are beyond imaginable. I think I read that Concourse F alone having 40 gates. This is truly a jewel.

[Martinman]

I think concourse F only added around 12 gates. You may be referring to the combined gates of what is now the international complex (Concourse E, Concourse F and the Terminal) where the majority of international flights will terminate. I've read that flights form pre-cleared cities such as Canada could occasionally still uses other concourses.

[Lady Celeste]

This should be great news for the airline buffs. Only 5 more months till the A380 comes to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Korean Air will start service to the airport via Seoul using the jumbo jet in August. 

 

 

 

Read more from an old article here:

 

http://www.ajc.com/news/business/super-jumbo-jet-coming-to-atlanta/nQRkR/

[Martinman]

If you're wondering why KAL is bringing this beast to ATL, its because yearly O&D on the route has exploded from 30,000 in 2003 to 188,000 in 2011.  Also Skyteam has no direct competition on the route.  

[Lady Celeste]

There is an interesting article in the April 28, 2013 print edition of Atlanta Journal/Constitution about the airport.

 

It's titled "Airport eyes new expansion". The article details findings from the Atlanta airport's $5 million master plan study on its furture development. Here are some interesting tidbits from the article. 

 

 

 

1) Almost one year after the opening of it's much herald international terminal, the airport could be on its way to getting a 6th runway. Since no viable location was found to be suitable for a second commercial airport in the metro area, the airport must increase capacity at its current location. Last year more than 95 million passengers passed through Hartsfield-Jackson, keeping it the world's busiest. By 2031, the passenger counts are expected to reach 120 million.  

 

The planners say a sixth runway could be shoehorned between I-75 and I-85, north of the fixth runway. So I guess that means no more interstate crossing runways. Since the airport is landlocked, some business in the path may have to make room for it. Also, runways are not cheap. With larger planes, runways must be longer and wider than ever before. One of Hartsfield's runways was just recently expanded to accept the arrival in Auguast 2013 of Korean Airline's A380 Jumbo Jet. 

 

2) One suggestion is extending the people-mover line beyond its current endpoint. This would create quicker turnaround and a short waiting time for passengers. The potential to increase people-mover capacity afftecs not only crowds on the trains, but it also guides the potential for expansion with additional concourses.  

 

3) More gates and concourses. With a total of 206 gates, including 12 added in the international terminal's Concourse F that opened last year, the airport has ample gates for current capacity through 2016. But come 2031, Hartsfield-Jackson is expected to need 33 additional gates -  24domestic gates and nine international gates. That would likely call for additional concourses.  

 

4) For fiscal year 2011, parking generated more than $114 million in revenue. It's also amongst the most urgent needs in the airport's long term plans. It's quite possible that more space will be need by 2031. It may need up to 15,000 additional parking spaces by 2031. 

 

 

 

Those are some of the interesting tidbits from the article. Hartsfield-Jackson is a case study for how an airport can be run. Considering the amount of passengers, landings and takeoffs it handles yearly, one can only be in amazement at the efficiency in which it is run. It is a massive generator of jobs and an economic powerhouse for the metro Atlanta region. I am quite sure that as time goes on, more details will surface and Hartsfield-Jackson 2031 Master Plan. 

[andremurra]

I worked on one of the "Second Airport" site-selection sustainability impact analyses - and our project aimed at finding the best site for the addition... from Chattanooga, Dawson County, Paulding County, I think there was one in DeKalb and/or Gwinnett and then we looked at expanding Hartsfield... of course we couldnt find anything positive about adding another airport to these areas since we were measuring environmental, economic, equity implications.  So we started looking at which site would have the least negative impact.

 

Expanding Hartsfield won that competition mostly because it has already been developed as the pollution/noise hub and what's adding a little more compared to bringing it to the Appalachian Mountains. I'm sure other studies were done - but I'm thrilled to see they are choosing to expand the current airport than razing Dawson County.  I will note that a large part of the "Second Airport" focus was to concentrate more on freight travel than passenger - so Im not 100% sure if the 6th runway is responding to that need or just expanding for future passenger growth.  I did think putting it in Chattanooga was interesting though since that might help rehabilitate the Atlanta-Chattanooga maglev project.

[Lady Celeste]

Hartsfield Jackson Airport Welcomes A380 Airbus

 

The world’s largest passenger jet has made its first stop at the world’s busiest airport — Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Airport officials celebrated the arrival of Korean Air’s Airbus A380 on Friday with a water cannon salute and ceremony. Atlanta is the seventh airport in the US able to handle the gigantic airplane. This is also testament to metro Atlanta's large Korean community. O&D numbers have been steadily rising on routes to Korean destinations from Atlanta.

 

 

(CNN) -- Superjumbo, the world's largest passenger plane, has finally conquered the world's busiest airport. Korean Air kicked off its double-decker Airbus A380 service this week from Seoul to Atlanta, which celebrated Friday with a spectacular ceremony. Shortly after touching down, Flight 035 slowly taxied to its specially modified gate under a towering arch of water cannons.

 

Read more here: http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/06/travel/superjumbo-atlanta-airport/?hpt=hp_bn10

[Lady Celeste]

For all of the airplane fans:

 

Here is a video of the first ever takeoff of an A380 from HJAIA. The guy narrating the video is hilarious and QUITE enthusiastic about the takeoff. You can really see from the six minute video that the airport is really busy. I now understand how there are well over 900,000 plane movements yearly. Enjoy... 

 

 For those who are impatient, the KAL A380 takes off at 5:48.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-8FsdLXris

[Lady Celeste]

Airport hotel set for takeoff! 

 

 

A 200 room full service hotel by Marriott has been planned near Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. The project is fueled in part by the neighboring Atlanta Aerotropolis. Porsche's North American HQ is currently under construction there. It has also been rumored that Volkswagen NA has also been scouting space at the development.

 

 

 

 

The $40 million to $60 million development next to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport would be another significant investment for Atlanta’s Southside, along with the new headquarters for Porsche Cars North America and the International Terminal at the airport.

 

 

The hotel will be a full service Marriott Renaissance. Ground could be broken this summer on the hotel.

 

 

Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/print-edition/2014/01/24/airport-hotel-set-for-takeoff.html  

 

 

 

And while I'm here:

 

 

Here's another landing video of the Korean Air A380 jumbo jet at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson. BTW, this is not my video. Flights now are daily for the Airbus A380. I'm glad to see demand strong. The O&D traffic out of Atlanta to Korea is steadily increasing. I found it interesting to see a plane landing and one taking off simultaneously. 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3tp2cg5Kr0

[Lady Celeste]

Southwest Airlines is finally jumping into the international travel business. Southwest will start international flights on July 1st of this year. I figured that it would be only a matter of time. International travel is a very lucrative market for airlines. Hartsfield-Jackson will play an integral role is the airline's push into the international business. The airline is taking baby steps by adding routes already handled by Airtran Airways. Anytime flights are added to ATL is a good thing.

 

 

 

Read more here: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2014/01/27/southwest-adding-international-flights.html

[Lady Celeste]

Delta is adding more international flights from Atlanta to Europe. I'm glad to see international service picking up from ATL.

 

 

 

 

Atlanta-based Delta (NYSE: DAL) and its joint venture partners Air France-KLM and Alitalia will add service this winter to hubs at Paris Charles De Gaulle International Airport and Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. From Atlanta, the joint venture will offer additional daily nonstop service for a total of four daily flights to both Amsterdam and Paris, timed to provide customers with more connecting opportunities to destinations throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

 

 

Read more here: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2014/05/05/delta-air-lines-inc-will-soon-add-flights-to.html

[Lady Celeste]

Virgin Atlantic will officially begin flights from Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport to London's Heathrow Airport on October 24th. The inaugural flight will arrive just after noon and will be carrying company founder Sir Richard Branson. Although Hartsfield already has service to Heathrow, it is nice to have competition on the route. Well shall see how this will affect prices.

[Lady Celeste]

Coming on the heels of the recently announced new destination of Doha via Qatar Airlines, Hartsfield-Jackson has landed yet ANOTHER direct destination.

 

 

Turkish Airlines has announced that it will expand to Hartsfield-Jackson by launching flights to the historic Turkish city of Istanbul. This is welcomed news as it affords even more direct connections from Atlanta to many parts of the world. As international trade becomes even more connected, this gives an edge in the recruitment of international business to the region. It should also be of note that not only is this is a new direct destination but also a new airline to Hartsfield-Jackson as well.

 

 

Read the announcement here: http://www.globalatlanta.com/article/27662/turkish-airlines-confirms-new-flights-to-atlanta/

[Lady Celeste]

Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport reaches a milestone!

 

The magical number was achieved today at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The airport welcomed its 100,000,000th passenger today. The lucky passenger's name is Larry and he arrived on a flight from Gulfport, MS around 8:30 this morning. HJATL is the first airport in history to reach such a milestone. What an amazing feat! Congrats to all who work hard to make the airport a success. I would be remiss to not mention the dedication shown to the airport by Atlanta's own Delta Airlines.