Maps
Mapping Airways: The World’s Flight Paths and Airports
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Mapping Airways: World’s Flight Paths and Airports
There are up to 8,755 commercial flights in the air at any given time of day. These flights transport thousands of people (and millions of dollars worth of goods) around the world.
But where are these people and goods headed? This map from Adam Symington uses historical data from OpenFlights to visualize the world’s flight paths.
The graphic shows a comprehensive data set encompassing 67,663 different routes that connect 10,000 different airports across the globe.
A Note On the Data
The map uses an OpenFlights database provided by the third-party source that hasn’t been updated since June 2014.
Because of this, the data used for the graphic is of historical value only. However, this detailed map sparked our curiosity and got us wondering—what are some of the busiest aviation hubs around the world right now?
We did some digging, and here’s what we found.
Busiest Airports by Passengers
There are several ways to gauge an airport’s popularity. One way is to measure total passenger traffic throughout the year.
According to Airports Council International (ACI), eight of the top 10 busiest airports for passenger traffic in 2021 were in America. Here’s a look at the top 10 list, as of April 11, 2022:
Rank | Airport | Country | Passenger Traffic (2021) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Atlanta GA (ATL) | 🇺🇸 US | 75,704,760 |
2 | Dallas/Fort Worth TX (DFW) | 🇺🇸 US | 62,465,756 |
3 | Denver CO (DEN) | 🇺🇸 US | 58,828,552 |
4 | Chicago IL (ORD) | 🇺🇸 US | 54,020,399 |
5 | Los Angeles CA (LAX) | 🇺🇸 US | 48,007,284 |
6 | Charlotte NC (CLT) | 🇺🇸 US | 43,302,230 |
7 | Orlando FL (MCO) | 🇺🇸 US | 40,351,068 |
8 | Guangzhou (CAN) | 🇨🇳 China | 40,259,401 |
9 | Chengdu (CTU) | 🇨🇳 China | 40,117,496 |
10 | Las Vegas NV (LAS) | 🇺🇸 US | 39,754,366 |
In 2021, the airport with the most passenger traffic was Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. It accommodated more than 75 million passengers last year—a 76.4% increase compared to 2020 figures.
Hartsfield-Jackson is well-known for being one of the busiest airports in the world. One reason for this is its convenient location—according to the airport’s official website, Atlanta is within a two-hour flight from 80% of the U.S. population.
Dallas/Forth Worth (DFW) came in second place, seeing 62.5 million passengers throughout 2021. DFW was one of the only airports to boost its service offerings throughout the pandemic, and is also the main hub for American Airlines, the world’s largest airline by fleet size.
Busiest Airports by Cargo
While the U.S. dominates the ranking when it comes to passenger traffic, the list is much more diverse when looking at air cargo volumes. Here’s a look at the ranking, based on loaded and unloaded freight and mail (including transit freight):
Rank | Airport | Country | Cargo Traffic (Metric Tonnes, 2021) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Hong Kong SAR (HKG) | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | 5,025,495 |
2 | Memphis TN (MEM) | 🇺🇸 US | 4,480,465 |
3 | Shanghai (PVG) | 🇨🇳 China | 3,982,616 |
4 | Anchorage AK (ANC) | 🇺🇸 US | 3,555,160 |
5 | Incheon (ICN) | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 3,329,292 |
6 | Louisville KY (SDF) | 🇺🇸 US | 3,052,269 |
7 | Taipei (TPE) | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | 2,812,065 |
8 | Los Angeles CA (LAX) | 🇺🇸 US | 2,691,830 |
9 | Tokyo (NRT) | 🇯🇵 Japan | 2,644,074 |
10 | Doha (DOH) | 🇶🇦 Qatar | 2,620,095 |
Hong Kong (HKG) takes the top spot since the airport processed more than 5.0 million metric tonnes of freight and mail throughout 2021.
Hong Kong has been known as one of the busiest air cargo hubs for over a decade and is able to maintain this reputation because of its strategic location, impressive infrastructure, efficient customs, and business-friendly trade regulations.
The COVID-19 Impact on Aviation
The global pandemic hit the aviation industry hard. At its lowest point, international travel was down 98% from normal levels.
While the aviation industry is starting to recover from its COVID-induced slump, things still haven’t fully bounced back yet, especially in places like Shanghai, where lockdowns are still being mandated.
But experts remain hopeful for the future. According to ACI World’s General Director Luis Felipe de Oliveira, last year’s recovery was just the beginning.
“With many countries taking steps towards the return of a certain normality, lifting almost all the health measures and travel restrictions as supported by science, we welcome the continuation of air travel demand’s recovery in 2022.”
-Luis Felipe de Oliveira, ACI World’s Director General
This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.
Demographics
Mapped: Population Growth by Region (1900-2050F)
In this visualization, we map the populations of major regions at three different points in time: 1900, 2000, and 2050 (forecasted).
Mapping Population Growth by Region
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
In fewer than 50 years, the world population has doubled in size, jumping from 4 to 8 billion.
In this visualization, we map the populations of major regions at three different points in time: 1900, 2000, and 2050 (forecasted). Figures come from Our World in Data as of March 2023, using the United Nations medium-fertility scenario.
Population by Continent (1900-2050F)
Asia was the biggest driver of global population growth over the course of the 20th century. In fact, the continent’s population grew by 2.8 billion people from 1900 to 2000, compared to just 680 million from the second on our list, Africa.
Region | 1900 | 2000 | 2050F |
---|---|---|---|
Asia | 931,021,418 | 3,735,089,775 | 5,291,555,919 |
Africa | 138,752,199 | 818,952,374 | 2,485,135,689 |
Europe | 406,610,221 | 727,917,165 | 704,398,730 |
North America | 104,231,973 | 486,364,446 | 679,488,449 |
South America | 41,330,704 | 349,634,344 | 491,078,697 |
Oceania | 5,936,615 | 31,223,133 | 57,834,753 |
World 🌐 | 1,627,883,130 | 6,149,181,237 | 9,709,492,237 |
China was the main source of Asia’s population expansion, though its population growth has slowed in recent years. That’s why in 2023, India surpassed China to become the world’s most populous country.
Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines and Indonesia have also been big drivers of Asia’s population boom to this point.
The Future: Africa to Hit 2.5 Billion by 2050
Under the UN’s medium-fertility scenario (all countries converge at a birthrate of 1.85 children per woman by 2050), Africa will solidify its place as the world’s second most populous region.
Three countries—Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Egypt—will account for roughly 30% of that 2.5 billion population figure.
Meanwhile, both North America and South America are expected to see a slowdown in population growth, while Europe is the only region that will shrink by 2050.
A century ago, Europe’s population was close to 30% of the world total. Today, that figure stands at less than 10%.
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