Which airport and codes pairing correctly identifies John F. Kennedy International Airport?

• A. Los Angeles International Airport — IATA JFK; ICAO LAX
• B. Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport — IATA SYD; ICAO YSSY
• C. John F. Kennedy International Airport — IATA JFK; ICAO KJFK
• D. Tokyo Narita International Airport — IATA NRT; ICAO RJAA

Answer: (C)

Understanding these airport codes hinges on the difference between IATA and ICAO identifiers. IATA codes are the three-letter codes travelers see on tickets and baggageTags, while ICAO codes are four-letter identifiers used by air traffic control and operations. In the United States, the ICAO code typically starts with a K and is followed by the airport’s three-letter IATA code. For John F. Kennedy International Airport, the IATA code is JFK and the ICAO code is KJFK. This pairing is correct because it reflects both the traveler-facing code and the official operational code for JFK. The other options mix up codes with the wrong airport: Los Angeles uses LAX (IATA) and KLAX (ICAO); Sydney uses SYD (IATA) and YSSY (ICAO); Tokyo Narita uses NRT (IATA) and RJAA (ICAO).