11 Largest and Busiest Airports in India

As the number of passengers on these 11 largest and busiest airports in India attests, the airline industry is currently thriving in India.

For the 22^nd consecutive month, India has been a world leader in domestic air traffic growth, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) report for January 2017. Compared to the January of the previous year, India has recorded a 26.6% increase in air traffic. This represents the consecutive15-month period where a 20+% growth was recorded. According to IATA “Demand is being stimulated by strong flight frequency.”

India is not isolated case. The air traffic around the world has been on the rise and 9.6% global increase in January 2017 is the best result in the last 5 years. The last time airline industry recorded such growth was in 2011. In fact, all markets recorded growth, expect Brazil, with India, China, and Russia well within double digits. In Asia, India, China, and Japan now comprise 45% of the domestic travel market. India alone is responsible for 1.3% of world’s domestic air traffic, trailing behind China with 8.7% and the United States at 14.9%.

The bright future for India’s airline industry is reflected by the number of aircraft on order. Currently, Indian airlines have some 880 planes on order, many of them among the fastest commercial passenger planes in the world today. Only about 30% of these are planned as replacements for the older models.

At this rate, India will replace the UK as the third largest airline market by 2026, confirming the trend of rising share of the developed world in air traffic, which is now at 40%, a sharp increase from 24% just ten years ago. In 2029, China is expected to become a world leader in air traffic, overtaking the United States and another Asian country, Indonesia, will enter top 10, ejecting Italy for the list.

According to the India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the record growth in the last six years has been fueled by both a strong economy and widespread appearance of budget airlines. Although they managed to bite of a market share from conventional airlines, like Air India and Jet Airways, these low-cost carriers have also created a large demand for cheap air tickets. IndiGo is on the forefront, with 40% of domestic air traffic, which is more than Air India and Jet Airways put together. The international flights are a completely different affair, though and traditional airlines are still dominating that segment.

This enormous increase in air traffic had to be followed by the infrastructure as well and India’s busiest airports had to invest significantly in order to keep up with the demand. The new air-traffic control tower at Indira Gandhi International Airport cost some $50 million and will require about 600 air traffic controllers and technicians to be fully operational, but currently only has 360. This is one of the snags India’s airline industry hit recently, the lack of trained personnel for ground operations. In fact, one-third of India’s air traffic controllers’ positions are vacant, due to low salaries. Hopefully, these 11 largest and busiest airports will manage to fill those vacancies and ensure safe and smooth operation on the Indian skies. In order to rank them, we used the latest Airports Authority of India’s data, illustrating the April-December 2016 period. All of them have recorded an increase in passenger numbers compared to the same period in 2015 and at this rate, they will soon become a permanent fixture on the list of 20 Largest Airports in the World. Here are they, the largest and busiest airports in India.

11. Trivandrum International Airport

City: Trivandrum Code: TRV Number of passengers: 2,912,878

We begin with the oldest airport in Kerala, Trivandrum International Airport. Originally established as a base for Royal Flying Club in 1932, the airport soon developed commercial lines. In the late 1970s, it flew its first international flights, but it gained international moniker only in 1991, the fifth airport in India to be dubbed so. In 2011, a new terminal for international passengers was open. The airport is home to Rajiv Gandhi Academy for Aviation Technology pilot training facility, as well as Air India’s repair and maintenance facilities.

10. Goa International Airport

City: Goa Code: GOI Number of passengers: 4,767,527

Goa International Airport ranks 10th in our list of largest and busiest airports in India. It is the only airport in the former Portuguese colony. It shares the site with an Indian Navy base INS Hansa, which severely limits its potential for growth and expansion.  The Navy uses the airport as its training facility for carrier pilots. Due to a large number of tourist visiting each year and increased traffic, a new airport has been proposed to accommodate more passengers. The site at Mopa has been selected as a location and the work started in 2016.

9. Pune International Airport

City: Pune Code: PNQ Number of passengers: 4,961,699

Pune International Airport ranks 9th in our list of largest and busiest airports in India. It is currently sharing the location with Indian Air Force’s Lohegaon Air Force Station and their Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighters. This presents the problem when it comes to future expansions needed to cope with the increased traffic and a new airport has been approved by the Government of Maharashtra. The project has been delayed due to lack of suitable land, but the location has finally been approved and the work is expected to start soon.

8. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport

City: Ahmedabad Code: AMD Number of passengers: 5,411,816

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport won’t be on our list of largest and busiest airports in India in the future, due to the fact that it is being replaced as a primary Ahmedabad airport by proposed Dholera International Airport, due to lack of space for needed expansions. The existing airport will be put up for sale by the AAI.

7. Cochin International Airport

City: Cochin Code: COK Number of passengers: 6,975,324

The busiest airport in the state of Kerala, Cochin International Airport was the first airport in India built with private as well as public funds. The funds are raised by some 10,000 expat Indians from all over the world, who wanted an international airport in their home state. They now own the Cochin International Airport Limited, a public company that operates the airport. Judging by the success of the airport, it may be prudent for the Indian government to encourage similar project in the future.

6. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport

City: Hyderabad Code: HYD Number of passengers: 11,104,822

Named after Rajiv Gandhi, a former Prime Minister and son of Indira Gandhi, it is the main airport in Hyderabad area and 6th among largest and busiest airports in India. His widow Sonia Gandhi laid the foundation stone for the airport in 2005 and it was opened in 2008.

5. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport

City: Kolkata Code: CCU Number of passengers: 11,439,668

Originally called Dum Dum Airport, after a village it was located in, the main Kolkata airport changed its name to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in 1995, when the new international terminal was opened.

4. Chennai International Airport

City: Chennai Code: MAA Number of passengers: 13,642,816

Chennai International Airport ranks 4th in our list of largest and busiest airports in India. It is a regional headquarters for Airports Authority of India for South India, covering seven South-Indian states. Despite being slated for privatization in 2013, the AAI dropped those plans in favor of further modernization in fear of increased prices and faced with protest from both Airlines and trade unions.

3. Kempegowda International Airport

City: Bangalore Code: BLR Number of passengers: 17,254,644

As Bangalore developed into “Silicon Valley of India” in the 1990s, the need for a larger and better airport became evident, as the existing HAL Airport just couldn’t handle the increasing traffic. The site in a nearby Devanahalli village was selected for a new airport. It grew by leaps and bounds and it wasn’t long that the new airport became one of the busiest in India, with almost 500 aircraft movements per day.

2. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport

City: Mumbai Code: BOM Number of passengers: 36,784,952

Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport ranks second in our list of largest and busiest airports in India, It is the main international hub for Mumbai area. Chhatrapati Shivaji, after whom the airport was named, was a Maratha emperor from the 17th century. The title “Maharaj” was added in 2016. In 2015 it was awarded Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Best Airport award in its category, as well as Best Airport in India and Central Asia award in 2016. The airport code BOM is a throwback to the time when Mumbai was called Bombay.

1. Indira Gandhi International Airport

City: Delhi Code: DEL Number of passengers: 42,502,177

The title of the largest and busiest airport in India goes to Indira Gandhi International Airport. It is the busiest airport in India both in terms of passenger and cargo traffic. Currently able to handle 40 million passengers annually, the planned expansion will increase that number to 100 million by 2030. It has won several prestigious awards, among them The Best Airport in Central Asia in 2016. Not bad for a former World War 2 RAF station.