The Airport Council International – Latin America & the Caribbean (ACI-LAC) released today the top ten ranking of airports in the region with the most passenger traffic, cargo, and aircraft movements in 2022. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the listing was dominated by hubs in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil, the three largest aviation markets in the region. Let’s investigate further.
Top ten passenger traffic airports in Latin America & the Caribbean
ACI-LAC’s reports show a 47.8% increase in passenger traffic in the region last year compared to 2021. The top ten airports in the region jointly received over 246 million passengers. Mexico City International Airport (MEX) was the region’s main airport for passengers. It received 46.2 million passengers (a 28.3% increase versus 2021, although still below pre-pandemic traffic levels). In 2023, MEX continues to be the busiest airport in the region, receiving 23.50 million passengers in the first half of the year. However, it is closely followed by other airports in the region. Mexico City Airport was the only Latin American hub to crack the world’s top busiest last year.
Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport (BOG) was Latin America’s second-largest airport for passengers in 2022. It received 35.3 million passengers and surpassed Sao Paulo Guarulhos for the first time in its history. Talking about Sao Paulo Guarulhos International (GRU), the Brazilian hub was the third largest in 2022. It received 34.48 million passengers. GRU is performing even better this year, receiving 18.92 million passengers between January and June.
The top ten airports list for passengers in Latin America last year was completed with the following hubs:
- Cancun International (CUN) – 30.48 million passengers
- Lima International (LIM) – 18.6 million passengers
- Santiago de Chile International (SCL) – 18.51 million passengers
- Congonhas International (CGH) – 18 million passengers
- Tocumen International (PTY) – 15.7 million passengers
- Guadalajara International (GDL) – 15.6 million passengers
- Brasilia International (BSB) – 13.4 million passengers
Congonhas and Santiago de Chile airports had the largest year-on-year traffic growths, increasing their passenger numbers by 87.3% and 86.7%, respectively. Rafael Echevarne, ACI-LAC’s general director, said,
“The ten main airports in Latin America and the Caribbean perform a key role in the connectivity of our countries, promoting the economic development and improving our connectivity with the rest of the world.”
Top ten airports by cargo volumes
In terms of cargo, the region registered a total increase of 1.3% in 2022 versus the previous year. Domestic air cargo traffic increased by 0.7%, while international air cargo traffic decreased by 3% versus 2021, ACI-LAC reported. On this ranking, El Dorado, Mexico City, and Santiago de Chile airports were the top airports in the region for cargo operations. The ranking was completed by Guarulhos, Viracopos (VCP), Quito (UIO), San Juan (SJU), Lima, Guadalajara, and Ezeiza International (EZE) airports. Finally, the airports with the most aircraft movements in the region were MEX (384,450 total movements), Bogota (296,777), Guarulhos (242,888), Cancun (214,374), and Congonhas (196,137).
Source: SIMPLE FLYING
