Airport hubs see a lot of incoming passengers transferring to planes that are not served directly from their original point of departure, according to The Economist.
Hubs are popular with airlines because they make their operations considerably more efficient. Airport owners like them because hubs have more flights. And local users like them because they serve more destinations: pooling passengers from many different points of departure makes it possible for airlines to offer flights to places that would otherwise be uneconomic, it says.
Let's take a look at some of the busiest airport hubs in the world.
Source: The Economist
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Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
City: Atlanta
Country: The United States
Population of the metropolitan area: 5 million
Distance to city centre: 13 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 1
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Frankfurt am Main Airport
City: Frankfurt
Country: Germany
Population of the metropolitan area: 3 million
Distance to city centre: 12 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 2
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O'Hare International Airport
City: Chicago
Country: The United States
Population of the metropolitan area: 10 million
Distance to city centre: 27 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 3
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Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
City: Amsterdam
Country: The Netherlands
Population of the metropolitan area: 2 million
Distance to city centre: 12 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 4
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Dubai International Airport
City: Dubai
Country: The United Arab Emirates
Population of the metropolitan area: 1 million
Distance to city centre: 5 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 5
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Munich Airport
City: Munich
Country: Germany
Population of the metropolitan area: 3 million
Distance to city centre: 30 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 6
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Charles de Gaulle Airport
City: Paris
Country: France
Population of the metropolitan area: 11 million
Distance to city centre: 24 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 7
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Heathrow Airport
City: London
Country: The United Kingdom
Population of the metropolitan area: 15 million
Distance to city centre: 24 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 8
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Beijing Capital International Airport
City: Beijing
Country: China
Population of the metropolitan area: 17 million
Distance to city centre: 26 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 9
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John F Kennedy International Airport
City: New York City
Country: The United States
Population of the metropolitan area: 19 million
Distance to city centre: 21 kilometres
Global rank in transfer passengers: 10