What is a hub airport?
An airport where an airline bases its network and connects most of its flights, such as Frankfurt for Lufthansa or Doha for Qatar Airways.
Hub airport, explained
Airlines route most of their long-haul flights through their hubs. A trip on an airline that does not fly your route nonstop usually connects at its hub.
The hub shapes the trip: the length of the connection, the lounge you wait in and how many cities you can reach. Comparing connections through different hubs is how one-stop business class trips are priced.
Airlines build their hub schedules in waves, so long-haul arrivals from one region land shortly before departures to another, and they put their best lounges there. A hub in the right direction keeps the detour short; one far off the straight line adds hours, so two airlines' hubs on the same trip can give very different total travel times.
On a business class trip
From New York to Prague, Lufthansa connects through Frankfurt, Austrian Airlines through Vienna and Air France through Paris.
Related terms
- Layover
The time between two flights in a connecting city, usually a few hours. On international tickets it lasts under 24 hours; anything longer is a stopover.
- Stopover
A planned stay of more than 24 hours in a connecting city on an international ticket, as opposed to a layover, which is a short wait between flights.
- Airline alliance
A group of airlines that share networks, lounges and loyalty benefits: Star Alliance, oneworld and SkyTeam.
- Positioning flight
A separate flight to the city where the main trip starts, taken because a fare from there is cheaper or better.
- Fifth-freedom flight
A flight by an airline between two countries that are not its home, as part of a route that starts or ends at home.
Further reading: New York to Prague in business class. Every term in the glossary.
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