New survey reveals the worst airport in the US

Most experienced travelers have airport horror stories, and many have a list of airports they avoid at all costs.

AirHelp, which specializes in air traveler rights and seeks compensation for delays or cancellations, last week released its 2019 rankings of global airports and airlines.

Bloomberg News points out that Newark Liberty holds the dubious distinction of worst U.S. airport, ranking No. 116 in a list of 132 international travel hubs. (Internationally, Portugal’s Lisbon Portela Airport Lisbon brought up the rear.)

Indeed, U.S. airports didn’t distinguish themselves at all: The highest-ranked — Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport — only made it to the No. 34 spot.

Top ranked airports in the world

For the record, two global airports are tied for the No. 1 spot: Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar, and Tokyo International Airport.

Airport ratings depend on three factors: on-time performance (which makes up 60% of the score), service quality (20%) and food and shopping (the final 20%).

U.S. airports’ lackluster showing is largely beyond their control, AirHelp CEO Henrik Zillmer told Bloomberg: Weather-related delays are far more prevalent here than in other countries, although our long security lines don’t help scores for efficiency.

Top 5 (best) U.S. airports

Bottom 5 (worst) U.S. airports