Top 5 Busiest Airports in India

India’s busiest airports handle massive passenger volumes, led by Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport with over 73 million passengers annually in recent years.

Rank Airport City Passengers (millions, latest annual)
1 Indira Gandhi Intl (DEL) Delhi 73.7
2 Chhatrapati Shivaji Intl (BOM) Mumbai 47.2
3 Kempegowda Intl (BLR) Bengaluru 25.0
4 Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Intl (CCU) Kolkata 20.2
5 Chennai Intl (MAA) Chennai 19.6

• Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport handled 79.26 million passengers in FY25 (Apr 2024–Mar 2025), driven by international demand.
• Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj saw 55.12 million, boosted by IT/business travel and infrastructure upgrades.
• Bengaluru’s Kempegowda grew 8% YoY in 2025 to 43.82 million, with 28.7% international surge and record daily peaks like 137,317 on Nov 23.

Overall Trends
Total passenger traffic for top airports rose modestly 3% YoY to 170 million in the first 5 months of FY26 (Apr–Aug 2025).
Domestic routes like Mumbai-Delhi (39,000 flights in 2024) highlight demand pressure, with Bengaluru-Delhi at 27,000.
Projections for FY26 indicate 4-6% growth, limited by caps but supported by new routes and larger aircraft. What factors are driving passenger growth at Indian airports? India’s airport passenger growth is propelled by rapid infrastructure expansion, rising middle-class incomes, and government initiatives like UDAN. Favourable demographics and low-cost carrier dominance further boost demand, with projections hitting 665 million passengers by FY31.

Key Drivers
• Infrastructure Surge: Operational airports rose from 74 in 2014 to 164 in 2025, with capacity reaching 575 million annually via modernizations.
• Regional Connectivity: UDAN activated 657 routes across 93 airports, targeting underserved areas and 40 million more passengers.
• Demographics and Affordability: Young population, expanding middle class, and low-cost carriers like IndiGo (53% domestic share) drive 8.3% CAGR vs. global 3.5%.

Economic Factors
Fleet growth via reforms like Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak lowers leasing costs, while non-aero revenues from retail/parking enhance viability.
International travel surges 7-10% from new routes and business/leisure, outpacing domestic 4-6%.
Challenges like air traffic upgrades get ₹15,000 crore investment for AI automation.