The ongoing rivalry between Chicago O'Hare International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport took a twist this week as the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration revealed stats proving that O'Hare was the busier airport in 2014.
That is, if you define busy by most takeoffs and landings.
According to the FAA, O'Hare boasted 881,993 total flights last year, compared to 868,359 for Hartsfield-Jackson.
"Chicago has always stood at the crossroads of the world and the global economy," said Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel in a statement. "This news reflects and reinforces our city's broader economic success story as airlines add new routes to international markets, companies continue to locate in the city, and neighborhoods experience an infusion of economic growth."
Emanuel went on to say that "as Chicago reclaims its place with the world's busiest airport, it speaks to the strength of our city's economy - the No. 1 city in America for corporate relocations, the top metro area for foreign direct investment, and record growth in international tourism."
But hold the phone.
According to Hartsfield-Jackson spokesman Reese McCranie via CNN's Thom Patterson, the Atlanta airport remains atop the list in terms of annual passenger traffic, with it projected to surpass 96 million passengers for 2014.
In regards to the ongoing rivarly, that's a significant number considering O'Hare recorded just 66.7 million passengers in 2013.
So while O'Hare has Hartsfield-Jackson beat by more than 13,000 total flights, the latter is far and away busier than the former in terms of annual passenger traffic.
"With our friends in Chicago, it's always a little bit of friendly rivalry," said McCranie. "Our operations folks are probably getting ribbed by their operations folks for edging us out. But you know, we're all one aviation system, so when O'Hare does well, other airports-including ours-do well."
So, depending on what's considered busy, there's a strong case that can be made for each airport.
Nonetheless, neither side is willing to concede.
"We'll let them hold the mantle this year," said McCranie. "We'll come back swinging next year, and we'll see what happens."
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