section_path: Air traffic and statistics/Overview
section_name: Overview
paragraph_text: Overview
  
  When ranked by passenger traffic, Heathrow is the eighth busiest airport internationally, behind Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Denver International Airport, Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Dubai International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, and Istanbul Airport, for the 12 months ending December 2022. London Heathrow Airport was noted as the best-connected airport globally in 2019 according to the OAG 's Megahubs Index with a connectivity score of 317. Dominant carrier British Airways was recorded as holding a 51% share of flights at the hub.
  
  In 2015, Heathrow was the busiest airport in Europe in total passenger traffic, with 14% more passengers than Paris–Charles de Gaulle Airport and 22% more than Istanbul Atatürk Airport. Heathrow was the fourth busiest European airport by cargo traffic in 2013, after Frankfurt Airport, Paris–Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.
  
  In 2020, Heathrow's passenger numbers dropped sharply by over 72%, (a decrease of 58 million travellers compared to 2019), due to the impact caused by restrictions and/or bans on travel caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic. More than four million passengers travelled on domestic and international flights in and out of Heathrow in March 2023, meaning it was once again the busiest airport in Europe after falling to the second spot in November 2022.
  
  On 29 November 2024, it was reported that Heathrow Airport is testing the usage of Artificial Intelligence, a system known as Amy, to assist air controllers in managing one of the world's busiest airports. The system, which relies heavily on the efficiency of coordination, is capable of tracking aircraft across a wide airspace with the combination of radar and video data collected from the ground.