José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport — Guayaquil, Ecuador

Named for José Joaquín de Olmedo, the poet and statesman who became Guayaquil's first civic leader after independence from Spain, GYE opened at its current site in the mid-2000s to replace an older field that had grown hemmed in by the expanding city. Guayaquil itself is Ecuador's largest city and the country's principal port, sprawling along the Guayas River near where it empties into the Pacific, and the airport reflects that commercial weight by outranking the capital's own airport in passenger volume most years. Warm, humid air rolling off the coast shapes flying conditions, while the terminal serves as a springboard for travelers heading onward to the Galápagos Islands. Banana, cacao, and seafood exports move through the surrounding province, and much of that trade's logistics activity radiates outward from the airport's cargo apron and the business district it borders.