Tl;dr – “Down Goes Hartsfield-Jackson, Down Goes Hartsfield-Jackson, Down Goes Hartsfield-Jackson!”
For the first time, Dubai International Airport (DXB) has eclipsed Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) in terms of passenger capacity. This November 2025’s numbers are as follows: DXB stands at approximately 5.29 million available seats, while ATL is at 5.12 million seats.
This is quite notable as Atlanta has been the world’s busiest airport by passenger traffic since 1998, holding the title for 26 of the last 27 years, with the exception of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dubai, of course, holds quite the strategic position between Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, making it a prime global connection point.
Sprinkle in a little open skies policy, and an integrated airport-airline ecosystem, and it’s no surprise that Dubai’s growth has been so fast and furious (Luda!).
Also worth mentioning – Dubai doesn’t operate any domestic flights, thus by some calculations, DXD has already laid claim to the World’s Busiest Airport, when accounting for purely international travelers.
