London Heathrow has retained its title as the world’s most connected airport with a staggering 65,000 connections possible on the busiest day for aviation.
That was slightly below last year’s result but still offering a wider range of connections than any other airport in the world, according to the Megahubs Connectivity Index compiled by OAG.
The index considers all connections that are feasible between scheduled flights adhering to an airport’s minimum connect times within a six-hour window and where at least one flight is international.
OAG says this reflects both the scale of the airport in terms of destinations served, the number of inbound and outbound flights as well as scheduling.
“In some instances, schedule co-ordination, which ensures waves of inbound flights are timed to provide the maximum connectivity to outbound flights is key, while for other megahubs, the sheer scale of the domestic operation and how that connects to international air services is what drives international connectivity,’’ OAG says.
Fifteen US airport rank among the top 50 megahubs but only one, Chicago O’Hare, is in the top five.
OAG notes the close cooperation between an airline and an airport often required to create a Megahub is reflected at Atlanta (ranked 8th), Dallas/Fort Worth (19th), Miami (20th) and Houston (21st).
Four European airports join Heathrow in the top 10: Frankfurt (which comes in second), Amsterdam (4th), Munich Airport (5th) and Paris Charles de Gaulle (7th).
“The fact that half of the top 10 megahubs are located in Europe reflects the sheer density of the aviation market, with a very high proportion of flights being international, the high propensity to fly among Europeans and the concentration of flights at a handful of already very busy airports,’’ the index says.
“Fifteen percent of all scheduled aviation capacity in Europe is to or from one of these five airports.”
Also in the global top 10 are Toronto (6th), Hong Kong (10th) and Singapore Changi (9th), which is also the most connected international hub in Asia.
Kuala Lumpur was the world’s most connected airport for low-cost carriers.
Major airports to see their index fall in 2019 include Dubai, Delhi, Mumbai and Fort Lauderdale.
Meanwhile, airports rising up the rankings include Munich, which moved from 11th place to 5th; Seoul Incheon which moved up to 11th place from 15th; and Mexico City which rose to 15th from 20th position.
