IGA Istanbul Airport, which opened just six years ago in 2018, has been named the world’s best-connected airport, according to new data from aviation analytics firm Cirium. The airport, strategically located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, operates 309 nonstop flights to destinations around the globe, primarily through Turkish Airlines, which serves more countries than any other airline.
Handling nearly 90 million passengers annually, Istanbul Airport is the seventh busiest in the world and boasts an impressive capacity to accommodate up to 200 million passengers each year. This has proven advantageous, particularly as air traffic in the first half of 2024 exceeded pre-pandemic levels for the first time.
“Our strategic location allows us to serve as a vital hub for international travel,” said Selahattin Bilgen, the airport’s CEO, in a statement to CNN. He also highlighted the airport’s resilience, noting its rapid recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic, reaching pre-pandemic passenger numbers faster than any other airport worldwide.
Following Istanbul Airport in Cirium’s rankings are Frankfurt Airport, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, with the latter tied with Chicago O’Hare International Airport for the fourth position. Dubai International Airport, which handled approximately 87 million passengers in 2023, secured the sixth spot.
Notably, Istanbul Airport is one of only six airports globally and two in Europe that provide access to all inhabited continents, making it a crucial hub in global air travel.
The list of the world’s best-connected airports continues with Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in seventh place, Shanghai Pudong International Airport at eighth, and Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest by passenger volume, in ninth. Rome Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport rounds out the top ten.
This ranking underscores the dynamic shifts in global air travel hubs, with newer airports like Istanbul rapidly rising to prominence due to strategic locations and robust growth in flight connections.
