Story highlights
President Obama called out poor U.S. airport rankings at a press conference Tuesday
U.S. airports didn't rate among the top 25 world airports in a recent global survey
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport ranked 30th
There’s some work to be done to get United States airports on par with their global competitors. This is according to President Obama, who highlighted poor U.S. airport rankings during a press conference Tuesday.
“Just one interesting statistic when it comes to airports. There was a recent survey of the top airports in the country – in the world – and there was not a single U.S. airport that came in the top 25. Not one – not one U.S. airport was considered by the experts and consumers who use these airports to be in the top 25 in the world. I think Cincinnati airport came in around 30th,” Obama said as he addressed questions about the contentious debate over forced government budget cuts and the recent Federal Aviation Administration furloughs.
Politics aside, the president is correct that Cincinnati’s airport was ranked 30th on a recent list of the world’s top 100 airports. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport was the first U.S. airport to appear on the list, released earlier this month as part of the Skytrax World Airport Awards.
And the world’s best airport is …
Singapore Changi Airport took the No. 1 spot, followed by Incheon International Airport in Seoul. Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport ranked third. Of the top 10 airports, five were in Asia and four were in Europe. Vancouver International Airport, ranked No. 8, was the only North American airport to make the top 10.
17 U.S. airports made the top 100:
No. 30: Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport
No. 36: Denver International Airport
No. 40: San Francisco International Airport
No. 48: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
No. 54: Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
No. 62: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
No. 63: New York JFK International Airport
No. 71: Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport
No. 79: Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
No. 80: Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport
No. 84: Chicago O’Hare International Airport
No. 86: Raleigh-Durham International Airport
No. 87: Charlotte/Douglas International Airport
No. 88: Boston Logan International Airport
No. 93: Newark Liberty International Airport
No. 94: Salt Lake City International Airport
No. 97: Pittsburgh International Airport
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Skytrax’s World Airport Awards are based on 12.1 million survey questionnaires filled out by passengers covering 108 different nationalities and 395 airports worldwide during a nine-month survey period in 2012 and 2013. The survey asked travelers about departures, arrivals and airport transit and includes questions about terminal amenities, comfort and cleanliness, security, staffing and other elements of the airport experience.
What do you think? Are U.S. airports underrated or in need of improvement? Which airports need the most work? What specifically needs addressing?