

History ĭenver has traditionally been home to one of the busier airports in the United States because its midcontinent location was ideal for an airline hub. In both 20, DEN was the third busiest airport in the world as well as the third busiest airport in the United States by passenger traffic DEN has been among the top 20 busiest airports in the world every year since 2000. The airport is located on the western edge of the Great Plains and within sight of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. With over 35,000 employees, the airport is the largest employer in Colorado. The airport is a major hub for United Airlines and is the largest operating base for both Frontier Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Opened in 1995, DEN currently serves 25 different airlines offering non-stop service to over 215 destinations throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia it was the fourth airport in the U.S. The airport is 25 miles (40 km) driving distance from Downtown Denver, 19 miles (31 km) farther than the former Stapleton International Airport, the facility DEN replaced: the airport land was originally part of Adams County until the construction of the airport in 1995, and is actually located in between Commerce City and Aurora with the Southwest side connecting strip of neighborhoods (on the route of Peña Blvd) being the only connection with the rest of the city of Denver: many airport-related services, such as hotels, are located in Aurora. Runway 16R/34L, with a length of 16,000 feet (3.03 mi 4.88 km), is the longest public use runway in North America and the seventh longest on Earth. At 33,531 acres (52.4 sq mi 135.7 km 2), it is the largest airport in the Western Hemisphere by land area and the second largest on Earth, behind King Fahd International Airport.

Denver International Airport ( IATA: DEN, ICAO: KDEN, FAA LID: DEN), locally known as DIA, is an international airport in the Western United States, primarily serving metropolitan Denver, Colorado, as well as the greater Front Range Urban Corridor.
