As the airline industry grew pre-coronavirus period, so did the airports.To offer more capacity, airports around the world have expanded into super-sized intercontinental hubs, adding more terminals and gates.Accordingly, the airport expansion entailed the construction of new runways.So, how many runways can an airport have?
A giant with eight runways
If you want to see as many runways as possible serving a single airport, you needn’t look any further than Chicago O’Hare International (ORD). The windswept city’s transcontinental mega-center has at least eight separate landing strips as well as a helipad. Thanks to this gigantic structure, it is one of the airports in the region where private jet charter services are used the most.
The orientation of these runways can often require very difficult operations. Between the eight runways there are two sets of three runways running parallel to each other. Aeroplanes are allowed to land simultaneously, taking into account the minimum separation distances set by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
However, O’Hare is so spacious that there is enough space at the airport to allow two or even three planes to land simultaneously. This enormous aerodrome has three separate air traffic control (ATC) towers to coordinate operations.
Everything is bigger in Texas
Although the largest number of runways is actually located at an Illinois airport, Dallas Fort Worth International (DFW) in the Lone Star State is one of the first that comes to mind when it comes to the most magnificent airports.
Before the coronavirus, DFW’s seven runways hosted the third largest annual aircraft movement in the world. Much like Chicago O’Hare, this intercontinental megacenter is also one of those rare airports capable of facilitating triple parallel landings.
The giant in Europe with six runways
There are also several airports worldwide with up to six runways. In the USA, Denver International Airport (DEN) and Colorado and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) also have 6 runways as in Europe.
The Netherlands is home to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS), with all six runways serving a single terminal. In addition, they are all located below the sea level.
The most famous runway in Amsterdam is Polderbaan. This landing strip, which was opened in 2003, is located in a land reclaimed by the filling of the sea. However, to reduce noise pollution, this runway is located beyond the A5 motorway, five kilometers from the terminal building. This also requires multiple ATC towers, just like at Chicago O’Hare airport.
