Current Affairs

November 19, 2023

U.S. Airports in 2023

The Best and Worst U.S. Airports of 2023

The Journal’s ranking of the 50 largest U.S. airports finds fliers in the West have lots to brag about, while New Yorkers settle for ‘works in progress’

There’s enough that’s easy about traveling through Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to land it first among the 20 largest airports in this year’s rankings.

There’s enough that’s easy about traveling through Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to land it first among the 20 largest airports in this year’s rankings.

By Dawn Gilbertson| Photographs by Adam Riding for The Wall Street Journal

Nov. 14, 2023 9:00 pm ET

579 Responses

PHOENIX—Searing heat. Erratic sports teams. An unending influx of Californians.

Residents of this desert city have plenty of gripes. One thing you’ll hear few complaints about: the airport. Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a breeze to get to. It offers a solid lineup of airlines and flights. And travelers rarely fret about flight delays and cancellations given the never-have-to-look-at-the-forecast weather.



It’s a combination that helped land the airport atop The Wall Street Journal’s annual ranking of the country’s busiest airports—again. Sky Harbor took the crown in 2019, before a pandemic pause in the rankings.

Top Five Large U.S. Airports

Overall RankAirportOverall Score
1Phoenix (PHX)63.4
2Minneapolis (MSP)63.2
3Los Angeles (LAX)62.9
4Atlanta (ATL)62.7
5Detroit (DTW)61.4

Click to see where every airport landed in the full ranking.

Source: 2023 WSJ Airport Rankings

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport finished a hair behind Phoenix among the 20 busiest U.S. airports on this year’s list. Los Angeles International Airport took third, just behind them.

The Journal’s report card ranks the 50 largest U.S. airports on 30 measures divided into two categories important to travelers: The first group measures reliability, the second value and convenience.

Each accounted for half of an airport’s overall score, with 10 reliability measures, from Transportation Security Administration waits to time on the tarmac, carrying the most weight overall. After all, the thing we care most about in our travels is getting there on time.

New this year as a measure of customer satisfaction: a survey of travelers done by Dynata for the Journal on amenities that airports get right and wrong, from food and drink to bathrooms to parking.

(See the full results of this year’s large-airport and midsize-airport rankings.)

Good, not great

No airport had a perfect score or anything close to it, a sign of the never-ending stresses on these complex, 24-hour businesses. Sky Harbor, my second home as a Phoenix resident, scored 63.4 out of 100. That wouldn’t earn report-card bonuses in any household.

Top Five Midsize U.S. Airports

Overall RankAirportOverall Score
1San Jose (SJC)71.2
2San Antonio (SAT)70.4
3Sacramento (SMF)70.0
4Indianapolis (IND)69.9
5Houston (HOU)69.0

Click to see where every airport landed in the full ranking.

Source: WSJ Airport Rankings

San Jose Mineta International Airport in California, the winner in the midsize category, topped all airports with a score of 71.2. San Antonio finished second (70.4), followed by last year’s midsize winner, Sacramento (70).

San Jose shined in reliability, as well as value and convenience. The Silicon Valley airport prides itself on its short walks—you can still walk to the rental-car center—short security lines, on-time performance and therapy dog and cat programs. Earlier this year it introduced a new tagline: Fly Simple.

“We’ve worked really hard to concentrate on the things that we can control,” says Scott Wintner, deputy director.

San Jose Mineta International Airport topped the list of 30 midsize airports. Photo: Markus Mainka/Alamy

The worst-performing large airports won’t surprise anyone, especially given the nonstop headlines on congestion issues in the Northeast: Newark Liberty International Airport and New York’s John F. Kennedy. Dallas/Fort Worth International finished third-worst in our scorecard, dragged down by measures of reliability like heavy arrival and departure delays.

Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which oversees the region’s airports, describes Newark and JFK as “works in progress.” Newark’s redesigned Terminal A opened this year, and the Port Authority plans to overhaul the airport’s other two terminals. JFK is also in the midst of a revamp that will cost billions of dollars and take years to complete.

“We’re committed to a trajectory where Newark and JFK are world-class,” Cotton says.

Phoenix, where American and Southwest carry nearly three out of four passengers, was solidly reliable. It also performed well on money matters like airfares and Uber costs to downtown, plus amenities including baggage claim and car-rental facilities, though it fared poorly in rental-car costs on the November weekend we priced.

American and Southwest combine to fly by far the most passengers in and out of PHX.

Sky Harbor had among the fewest flight cancellations of any large airport, shorter delays than most and far shorter time on the tarmac awaiting takeoff or getting to the gate. The average taxi-out time—the time from when a plane leaves the gate until takeoff—was under 15 minutes, compared with 26 minutes at JFK.

Weather helps a lot, of course. Airport director Chad Makovsky also credits the takeoff and landing choreography the airport, airlines, FAA and others have worked to perfect over the years. It’s essential, given the airport’s compact size.

The Sky’s the Limit

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport finished first in the WSJ Airport Rankings. Below are some of its highlights and new features.

Sources: WSJ Airport survey; the airport

The city-owned airport near downtown Phoenix sits on 3,400 acres and has just three runways. That compares with 17,000 acres and seven runways at Dallas/Fort Worth, where Makovsky came from in 2021. PHX passenger traffic, fueled by the region’s explosive growth, is up nearly 10% from a year ago and about 4% from 2019 through September.

“We have to be very efficient,” he says.

Upgrades go live

Sky Harbor completed some major projects in the past 18 months that are already a hit with travelers, Makovsky says. Nearly 75% of the airport’s passengers are local. Contrast that with an airport like Charlotte, N.C., where 70% of the passengers are connecting.

In December, a couple months before metro Phoenix hosted the Super Bowl, the airport extended its PHX Sky Train service 2.5 miles to the rental-car center. Travelers previously had to schlep bags to the curb and board a shuttle bus that wound through clogged airport roadways. The airport’s bus fleet went from 120 to a dozen backup buses.

“Being able to connect from any of our terminals to the rental-car center in like five minutes is pretty cool compared to what we used to have,” Makovsky says.

Fliers appreciate features like the airport’s Sky Train and sun-blocking windows.

The airport opened a new concourse, for

Southwest Airlines, in summer 2022. It’s now coming to life as restaurants and bars start to open. A Bobby Flay outlet opened in the food court and a Guy Fieri sit-down restaurant is on the menu by the end of next year. Also on tap: a PGA Tour store with a simulator of the infamous 16th hole at the Phoenix Open. A Chase Sapphire Reserve lounge is due to boost the airport’s weak lounge lineup by next spring.

Makovsky says the new gates in Terminal 4, the airport’s busiest, provide a glimpse into PHX’s future as it builds another concourse in neighboring Terminal 3 and renovates existing concourses in Terminal 4. Many areas of Terminal 4, which opened 33 years ago, are showing their age.

The walkway to the new gates is significantly wider than other concourses at the airport, so there’s less passenger congestion. (Some passengers ding that area for the lack of moving walkways.) The gate areas are larger and windows have dynamic tinting so passengers can look out at the mountains even in the glare of the afternoon sun.

“At the end of the day, we’re trying to keep the stress down for customers,” Makovsky says.

Some fliers have suggested that Sky Harbor could have better signage, shorter walks and more long-haul international flights. (American and

British Airways offer nonstops to London and Condor has seasonal flights to Frankfurt.)

Richard Factor can’t find any fault with the airport. The inventor moved from New York to Sedona, Ariz., a tourist hot spot two hours north of Phoenix, about a decade ago. He and his wife travel frequently.

“The experience there compared to what it used to be back East is so much more pleasant that sometimes I think the airport itself should have a tip jar,” he says.

PHX ranked third in baggage-claim facilities in the traveler survey, trailing only New York’s LaGuardia and Minneapolis-St. Paul. The survey, done by Dynata for the Journal, is on amenities that airports get right and wrong, from food and drink to bathrooms and parking.

(See the full results of this year’s large-airport and midsize-airport rankings.)

Jacob Passy, Allison Pohle and Kevin McAllister contributed to this article.

—Sign up for the WSJ Travel newsletter for more tips and insights from Dawn Gilbertson and the rest of the Journal’s travel team.

Write to Dawn Gilbertson at dawn.gilbertson@wsj.com

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/travel/best-worst-airports-2023-rankings-96d6b945

November 14, 2023

Fall PFA Highlights

Polyurethane Foam Association Fall Meeting Addresses
Sustainability, Industry Innovation
Gollnitz and Khalil Inducted Into Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall Of Fame


TORONTO, ONTARIO (November 14, 2023)— Sustainability was at the forefront of the
Polyurethane Foam Association’s Fall
Meeting recently in Toronto.


Top industry executives, EHS specialists,
scientists, marketers, and regulatory analysts
met at the Omni King Edward Hotel for
networking sessions and presentations
covering everything from European end-of-
life requirements to irradiation of
polyurethane foam to yield 3-D printing
resins.


PFA’s Industry Issues Session provided
updates on key markets in the flexible foam
industry, including bedding and carpet
cushion. Additional presentations addressed
legal and regulatory developments,
isocyanate research projects, trade
remedies, and more.


In the Technical Program on the following day, presentations covered foam making equipment
and process controls, biocontent and recycling of automotive foam in Europe, inclusion of lignin
and soy polyols into foam formulations, upcycling of EOL foam into 3-D printing resins, and the
Virginia Tech/Arizona State closed loop recycling project.

Awards: Bill Gollnitz of Plastomer Corporation (L) and Dr. Hamdy
Khalil of Woodbridge Group (R) were inducted into the Flexible
Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame.

Chip Holton of NCFI
Polyurethanes (Center) was presented with PFA’s Lifetime
Achievement Award.

Chip Holton of NCFI Polyurethanes, PFA’s President, recognized new PFA members including
Reticulatus, Ingenieria Del Poliuretano Flexible, S.L., and PCC Rokita. He noted that since the
lifting of pandemic restrictions, 23 new companies have joined PFA.


“PFA continues to be a very effective voice for the flexible polyurethane foam industry,” Holton
noted. “PFA frequently reminds us that industry advocacy is much stronger as a group rather
than as individual companies; PFA also provides an exceptional forum for the exchange of
knowledge and critical industry information.”


As a highlight of the meeting, two long-term veterans of the industry were inducted into the
Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame was established to honor the
leaders and innovators. It serves as an information source for future industry members and
researchers regarding the contributions of individuals and companies who have led the growth
and betterment of the flexible polyurethane foam industry in North America.


Bill Gollnitz, Technical Director of Plastomer Corporation, and Dr. Hamdy Khali, Senior
Technology Advisor for Advanced Technologies and Innovation at Woodbridge Foam
Corporation, became the latest inductees, making a total of 35 individuals and companies
honored.


Gollnitz has more than 51 years’ experience in the flexible polyurethane foam industry. For
nearly 30 years, he has been Technical Director at Plastomer Corporation. Prior to that, he held
group management positions at ARCO Chemical Company and Olin Chemical. He began his
career in the foam industry with Firestone Foam, working as a special assistant to Firestone
President Bob Hay, a founding member of PFA and also a member of the Flexible Polyurethane
Foam Hall of Fame.


He has a deep understanding of how chemistry, manufacturing and suppliers can work together
to advance the polyurethanes industry, and developed a reputation for being able to oversee the
construction of flexible foam manufacturing plants from concept to full scale production. He is a
Past President of PFA, and currently serves on PFA’s Executive and Technical Committees.
“Every time there’s a threat to the industry, be it technical or regulatory, PFA has met it head on.
And I’m sure that’s going to continue in the future,” Gollnitz said in his acceptance speech. He
also expressed gratitude for the education tools PFA has developed to attract young professionals
to the industry, and to assist in continuing education of those who have made flexible foam their
careers.


Dr. Khalil pioneered the introduction and commercialization of renewable materials into the
polyurethane chemistry used in interior automotive parts manufacturing. Under his guidance,
Woodbridge became one of the early adopters of green technologies using biobased polyols.
Khalil also played a leading role in ongoing efforts to harmonize OEM specifications for VOC
emissions from plastics in auto interiors.


He served on the Board of Directors of the Ontario Bio Auto Council, and the Center for
Research and Innovation in the Bio Economy (CRiBE). He acted as an advisor to the National

Research Council of Canada on renewable and sustainable materials technology. Dr. Khalil
received the Outstanding Leadership from the Center For the Polyurethane Industry (CPI), and
the Technical Leadership Award from The Nano Division of the Technical Association for the
Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI). He was selected to the Advisory Panel For Arbora Nano for
the Advancement of Lignocellulosic Products. Dr. Khalil received the “Le Sueur Memorial
Award” from the Society of Chemical Industry for Outstanding Industrial Contribution.
His passion is in mentoring a new generation of scientists and engineers.


“Polyurethane is the most versatile polymeric system, and it has been serving humanity in more
applications than any other material known to mankind,” Khalil noted. “However, we have many
challenges. Our industry needs to be aggressive in innovation and building partnerships with
institutions and universities. There is much yet to discover about the potential of polyurethanes.”
After the Hall of Fame inductions, outgoing PFA President Holton was presented with PFA’s
Lifetime Achievement Award.


“All of us in the association appreciate Chip’s leadership over the last seven years,” said Russ
Batson, PFA Executive Director. “Chip has the unique ability to analyze a challenge and focus
everyone on the critical elements, so that we can decide on the most sensible pathways forward.”
Dr. Mojgan Nejad won the Dr. Herman Stone Technical Excellence Award. Her presentation,
“Sustainable PU Flexible Foams: Utilizing Renewable Materials from Biomass and Soy,” was
voted best by those attending the Technical Program. The award is named for Dr. Herman T.
Stone, who served as PFA’s first Technical Director. In 2007, Dr. Stone was inducted into the
Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame.


The Polyurethane Foam Association is a trade association founded in 1980 to help educate foam
users, allied industries and other stakeholders. PFA provides facts on environmental, health and
safety issues and technical information on the performance of flexible polyurethane foam (FPF)
in consumer and industrial products. FPF is used as a key comfort component in most
upholstered furniture and mattress products, along with automotive seating, carpet cushion,
packaging, and numerous other applications.


To learn more, visit www.pfa.org.

October 30, 2023

Mattress Recycling Update

Bye Bye Mattress tops the 1.5 million mark for Connecticut mattresses recycled

Sarah Houlton

Connecticut, US – In the eight years since the Mattress Recycling Council’s Bye Bye Mattress program started up in Connecticut, it has kept more than 1.5 million mattresses out of landfill. Placed end to end, MRC said, the mattresses would stretch all the way along the US east coast, from the very north of Maine to Key West in the south of Florida.

In the last fiscal year alone, almost 200,000 mattresses and box springs were recycled. The recycling rate was also increased, to 75%, with 3.75kT of foam, steel, fibre and wood being processed into new products. More than 24kT of materials have now been diverted from landfill in the eight years the program has been running.

“We also cultivated more participation from mattress retailers and other types of businesses that have large amounts of mattresses to recycle at once,” said Dan McGowan, MRC’s north-east programme coordinator. “The mattresses we collect are recycled locally, providing jobs and turning valuable materials into new products like carpet padding and a variety of steel products.”

https://www.utech-polyurethane.com/news/bye-bye-mattress-tops-15-million-mark-connecticut-mattresses-recycled

October 26, 2023

Durable Goods Orders Increase in September

US Durable Goods Orders Soared In September By Most In Over 3 Years

by Tyler Durden

Thursday, Oct 26, 2023 – 08:50 AM

After two straight months of declines, preliminary durables goods orders for September soared 4.7% MoM (far higher than the 1.8% expected), lifting orders by 6.0% YoY…

Source: Bloomberg

That is the biggest MoM jump since July 2020.

Orders ex-transports rose just 0.5% MoM and ex-defense soared 5.8% MoM.

Defense spending tumbled 14.4% MoM but non-defense aircraft spending soared 92.5% MoM…

Source: Bloomberg

Finally, as a reminder, this data is all nominal – i.e not adjusted for inflation.

https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/us-durable-goods-orders-soared-september-most-over-3-years

October 23, 2023

Chemical Rail Traffic Rises Again

North American chem rail traffic rises

North American chem rail traffic rises

MRC — North American chemical rail traffic rose for a ninth consecutive week, with railcar loadings for the week ended 14 October up 0.3% year on year to 44,668, according Association of American Railroads.

For the first 41 weeks of 2023 ended 14 October, North American chemical rail traffic was down 1.1% year on year to 1,857,880 – with the US down 2.3% to 1,275,816.

In the US, chemical railcar loadings represent about 20% of chemical transportation by tonnage, with trucks, barges and pipelines carrying the rest. In Canada, chemical producers rely on rail to ship more than 70% of their products, with some exclusively using rail.

We remind, for last week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 499,217 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.0 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending October 7 were 233,768 carloads, up 3.6 percent compared with the same week in 2022, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 265,449 containers and trailers, up 2.5 percent compared to 2022.

https://www.mrchub.com/news/409834-north-american-chem-rail-traffic-rises