Dubai’s DXB airport tops Middle East ranking of most connected airports in the world: report

Dubai’s DXB airport topped the list of most-connected airports in the Middle East and Africa, according to recent rankings published by Megahubs: Most Connected Airports in the World, on Wednesday.

The OAG Megahubs Index 2023, a leading platform for the travel industry, analysed flight data for the 100 largest airports in the world (based on total scheduled seats in August 2023) and at the largest 100 international airports on the busiest day - Friday 11 August 2023 - for global aviation in the last year (September 2022 - August 2023).

It calculated the total number of all possible connections between inbound and outbound flights within a six-hour window, added the report.

Dubai (DXB) topped the list in the Middle East, followed by Qatar (DOH), Johannesburg (JNB), Riyadh (RUH), and Egypt (CAI) rounding out the top five for the Middle East and Africa.

The data revealed that dominant carriers account for a significant portion of flights at these airports. On average, the leading airline at each hub operated roughly 50 percent of flights across the top 10 airports in the region.

Dubai (DXB) was also the highest-ranked non-Asian airport among the Top 25 Low-Cost Carrier Airport Megahubs, in 7th position, having climbed up from 19th place in 2019.

It was ranked 16th among Top 50 International Airport Megahubs – moving up from 24 in 2019.

Emirates, the airport’s dominant carrier held a flight share of 39%, in regards to airline dominance and connectivity.

Europe, Middle East and Africa Top 10 Megahubs achieve the highest average international connectivity Index of any region, with an average score of 179.

Dubai DXB airport sees record 2024 traffic after 8.4% rise in Q1

North America

Within the United States, New York’s JFK topped the list – coming in 2nd overall globally – followed by Chicago O’Hare Inernational (ORD), Toronto Pearson (YYZ) and Atlanta Hartsfield-jackson International (ATL).

Europe

In Europe, London Heathrow Airport (LHR) remains in the number one position globally and within Europe.

Amsterdam (AMS) came in 2nd place and has moved up from 4th place in 2019.

Mexico City (MEX) remained the top-ranked Megahub in Latin America, with Bogota (BOG) in second place.