Joe Biden suggested LaGuardia Airport was like something from a third world country. A New York Times op-ed called for it to be shut down. As the oldest operating airport in New York City and the 17th-busiest in the United States, LaGuardia is the focus of a lot of passenger frustration. But the numbers paint a more complex picture: LaGuardia may not be a crowd favorite, but it still does a lot of heavy lifting for NYC.