Did You Know? DIA Ranks Among Top 3 Busiest Airports In The World

Anyone who travels through Denver International Airport (DIA) knows how unbelievably busy that airport gets - but busy just took a whole new meaning.

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On Monday (Apr. 11), the Airports Council International (ACI) revealed its rankings list of the top 10 busiest airports worldwide in 2021; among the world's busiest airports include ones that are no strangers to the list - like Atlanta (ATL), Dallas (DFW), and Denver (DIA).

The Top 10 Busiest Airports In The World

In 2021, the Denver International Airport in Denver, CO became the third busiest airport in the world; Denver (DEN) was one of only four airports worldwide to serve more than 50 million passengers in 2021.

As per the Airports Council International's official list of the top 10 busiest airports in the world for 2021; the world's busiest airports are as follows:

Atlanta (ATL) - 75 million+
Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) - 62.5 million
Denver (DEN) - 58.8 million
Chicago-O'Hare (ORD) - 54 million
Los Angeles (LAX) - 48 million
Charlotte (CLT) - 43.3 million
Orlando (MCO) - 40.4 million
Guangzhou, China (CAN) - 40.3 million
Chengdu, China (CTU) - 40.1 million
Las Vegas (LAS) - 39.8 million

According to the Airports Council International (ACI) preliminary rankings, this is the highest-ever global ranking that the Denver International Airport has ever received.

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Denver Post via Getty Images

A lot of it is due to the types of travel that we’ve seen during the pandemic," Laura Jackson, vice president of air service development said in response to the rankings, 9News reported.

Jackson said high demand for domestic flights helped push Denver's ranking up the list.

“I think that this is probably the highest we’ll ever see Denver rank in the world as international passenger demand continues to return," Jackson said. "Airports like Chicago O’Hare and LAX that have more international travel than Denver, they’ll actually probably rise above us again."

Denver Post via Getty Images

Axios Denver says DIA's geographic position makes it an ideal connection point for domestic air travel.

"Despite the challenges, [DIA] has shown resiliency through the pandemic and has proven why Denver is such an important hub for our airline partners," Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington said.