Top 10 Best Airports in India | India’s Top Airports

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide

As it stands, we are constantly on the lookout for gorgeous, unusual, and popular places for an exciting journey, and what better way to attain your desired destination than by flying high?

Air travel is shortening our journeys and presenting us with breathtaking sights that we could only dream about in the past. Thankfully, India offers some of the most beautiful airports and amenities. With over 137 operating airports distributed across the country, India boasts a huge and well-connected network of airports. 

Source

Airports in India are operated and controlled by several different organizations, including the Airports Authority of India (AAI), private airport operators, and state governments. Some of the busiest and best airports in India are Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad. 

Airports serve both local and international travelers and handle a large amount of the country’s aviation traffic. With increased passenger traffic and new airlines joining the market, India’s aviation sector has witnessed tremendous expansion in recent years. As a result, there is a greater need for modern airports and infrastructure, which has resulted in major investments and growth in the industry.

Best Indian Airports

Top 10 Best Airports In India (International and Domestic)

1. Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) – New Delhi 

Source

Indira Gandhi International Airport in the financial year of 2023-24 reported the highest passenger traffic of 73. 6 million passengers. This marked a 12. A study carried out shows that there has been an 8% rise from the previous year. Of these, 19. International passengers comprised 47 million whereas the number has increased to a high of 24.4% rise. The airport also provided 442488 aircraft movements, also, it handled 1,003,306 tons of cargo which revealed the 12% increase in cargo traffic.

Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) is one of India’s best international airports, serving Delhi, the amazing capital city. It is also one of the busiest Indian airports in terms of cargo and passenger traffic and is sometimes referred to simply as Delhi Airport. The airport handled 67.3 million passengers in the fiscal year 2020. According to the most recent statistics from the UK-based air consultancy organization, it will be the seventh busiest airport in the world by 2023. It is the world’s second busiest airport by seating capacity, with over 3.6 million seats, and the biggest airport in Asia by passenger flow, with over 37 million passengers in 2021. For the fourth time in a row, Delhi Airport has been named “the Best Airport in India and South Asia” by Skytrax World Airport Awards. 

2. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) – Mumbai

Source

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai reached its highest monthly passenger growth rate ever in February  in the fiscal year 2023-24. The airport receives nearly about 52. Eight million passengers, an increase of congestion by 16 percent from the previous fiscal year, which was around forty-three. 9 million. The airport number of arrivals was over 26 million while the number of arrivals was approximately 26.7 million passengers during the same period Flew from one destination to another. Further, concerning Air Traffic Movement, the airport continues to handle growing ATM’s by 324,972 ATM’s which indicates ATMs have grown by 12% year on year.

Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport is the country’s second busiest air transportation hub. People utilize it in massive numbers every day to fly in, out, or as an intermediate stop or stopover. It has two terminals on a combined land area of 750 hectares (1,850 acres) and handles around 950 aircraft movements per day. The Mumbai Airport handled 45.87 million passengers in the fiscal year 2020. In the calendar year 2019, it was the 14th busiest airport in Asia and the 41st busiest airport in the world in terms of passenger traffic.     

3. Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) – Bangalore

Source

Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru touched a new high in FY 2023-2024 In the financial year 2023-2024 Kempegowda International Airport touched its high in terms of annual passenger and cargo traffic. The airport handled 37.53 million passengers as well as 439524 metric tons of goods carried. This included 32.86 million domestic passengers and 4. 67 million international passengers. During the same time, the airport registered 245880 movements and there has been a relative increase in both passengers and cargo traffic as compared to the previous fiscal years.

Kempegowda International Airport serves Bangalore, the state capital of Karnataka in India. It is located around 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of the city, in the Devanahalli neighborhood, on 4,000 acres (1,600 hectares). Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL), a public-private partnership, owns and operates the airport. Kempegowda International Airport, created by CleanMax Solar, became Karnataka’s first solar-powered airport. In April 2019 and March 2020, Kempegowda International Airport served 32,361,666 passengers. The airport handled around 16.2 million passengers and 411,550 tonnes (453,660 short tonnes) of cargo in the fiscal year 2021-22. 

4. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD) – Hyderabad

Source

Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD) had transported 25,044,664 passengers in the financial year 2023-2024 and has come across a rise when compared to the last year. In the same year total passenger traffic was 25,044,564 and this counted 20,830,091 domestic passengers and 4,214,573 international passengers. The traffic signals of the airport also went up in record proportion with the airport admitting more than 2.3 million passengers. Further, RGIA is in the process of increasing service offerings and developing infrastructure for actualizing its role as a premier aviation hub in India.

This airport is the country’s fourth busiest air transportation hub. It has a passenger terminal as well as a freight terminal. It is located near Shamshabad, about 24 kilometers (15 miles) south of Hyderabad, and was opened on March 23, 2008, to replace Begumpet Airport, which was the city’s only civilian airport. GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL), a public-private partnership, owns and operates the Rajiv Gandhi International airport. Between April 2021 and March 2022, it handled over 12 million people and over 140,000 tonnes (150,000 short tonnes) of freight. 

5. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport (CCU) – Kolkata

Source

Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport recorded 19,784,417 passengers in the fy 2023-24, which rose by 11.3% higher than that of the previous year. The airport also recorded 140,879 aircraft movements, and also 151,626 thousand tonnes of cargo traffic within the same period. This growth underlines its strategic importance as the chief aviation gateway for the eastern and northeastern region of the country that has vast connectivity both within the nation as well as across the globe.

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport is named after the leader of India’s freedom movement. It is around 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) from the city center. Kolkata Airport, which covers an area of 1,641 acres (664 hectares), is the major air traffic hub in the country’s east and one of two international airports in West Bengal. In the fiscal year 2021-22, the airport handled around 11 million people, ranking it fifth in India in terms of passenger traffic behind airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad. From April 2021 to March 2022, Kolkata Airport received a total of 11,036,108 passengers.

6. Chennai International Airport (MAA) – Chennai 

Source

Chennai International Airport catering more than 21 million passengers including 0. In the financial year 2023/ 2024 the port aims at handling 34 million tonnes of cargo. Over the past year the number of passengers using the airport has increased by 5.9 percent and growth in the number of aircraft movements which stood at 145,790 for that year. However, there is a decrease in the number, although a minimal and it stands at 0. The airport is still a major player, constituting 6% of the cargo tonnage; especially in the international segment, the airport is ranked third in India.

Chennai International Airport serves as a major entry point into the country for visitors from South and Southeast Asia. The airport is the sixth busiest in India. In 2018, it was also the 49th busiest airport in Asia, making it one of four major airports in India in the top 50 list. The airport has its station on the Chennai Metro network, which provides access to the city center. Travelers may eat a variety of foods and purchase them at the airport. The airport served approximately 9.5 million passengers in the fiscal year 2021. 

7. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (AMD)–  Ahmedabad 

Source

International passenger traffic of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at Ahmedabad grew at a faster pace in the end of fiscal year 2023-2024 with 1.54 million to 1.98 million. The airport has established a total passenger traffic of more than 5 million up to September of the financial year , which is 35% higher than the similar period of the previous financial year. This makes it one of the most operational airports in the region; a hub to quite a number of international and domestic flights.

Flights from the air transit hub commenced in 1991, even though it has been in service since 1937. Transit passengers may unwind in the spacious Lounge in Terminal 1 and the Port Lounge in Terminal 2. Aside from lounges, Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport also has duty-free stores, eateries, and a café. In the fiscal year 2021-22, it handled around 5.67 million passengers, ranking it eighth in India in terms of passenger volume.

8. Cochin International Airport (COK) – Cochin

Source

Cochin International Airport (COK) alone caters cargo and passenger traffic of more than 10.5 million passengers in the fiscal year 2023-24 in which various segments increase by different margins with an overall 18% increase in passengers than the previous year. This growth constituted both domestic and international passengers whereby, the airport reported increased air traffic movement to seventy thousand two hundred and three for the year. The Cochin International Airport to strengthen its facilities particularly the international terminal and is envisaging future development to address the evolving demand of passengers for air travel.

As of 2022, Cochin International Airport would handle 61.8% of all air passenger traffic in Kerala. The airport has three passenger terminals, one of which is an exclusive Business Jet Terminal and India’s first charter gateway. The airport is India’s first of its sort, built under a public-private partnership (PPP). During the fiscal year 2018-19, the airport handled over 10.2 million passengers and 71,871 aircraft movements. The airport has three passenger terminals and one freight terminal, totaling about 225,000 square meters (2,421,880 sq ft). 

9. Pune Airport (PNQ) – Pune

Source

There is an increase in traffic at Pune Airport during the fiscal year 2023-2024. This was possibly due to the fact that the airport was able to accommodate 9,525,484 passengers, an incremental 19% more than the previous year. This growth is also witnessed in the general performances as measured by the number of aircraft operations that stood at 64, 039 for the year.

Pune Airport is now the ninth busiest in India. Originally built as an aviation base by the Royal Air Force, a portion of it remains as one, now operated by the Indian Air Force. The airport is a civil enclave maintained by the Airports Authority of India on the western side of the Indian Air Force’s, Lohegaon Air Force Station. The airport handled approximately 8 million passengers in the fiscal year 2020. To relieve aviation traffic, the Airports Authority of India invested 40 crores in 2018 in a fresh new second terminal that would be connected with the current one. Work began in late 2018 and is scheduled to be finished in July 2023.

10. Dabolim Airport (GOI) – Goa 

Source

Goa’s Dabolim Airport is important in the regional air connectivity map despite stiff competition that comes with the existence of Mopa airport. There has been a notable increase of passengers passing through Dabolim Airport in the year 2023 where in the month of July alone, the airport accommodated 334,655 passengers,  an increase of 22.92% increase compared to July 2022.  The airport has also developed a reputation for the service it offers and was ranked the best in the last of 2023 in the Airport Service Quality survey conducted by the Airports Council International (ACI) with a score of 4.96 out of 5. In addition, Dabolim has an expansion plan that is undergoing which will increase the airport’s global capacity in the accommodation of domestic and international flights. 

The Goa International Airport is located in the most popular tourist destination. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) operates it as a civil enclave within the Indian Navy naval airfield INS Hansa. The airport is located in Dabolim, South Goa district, 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) from Vasco da Gama, 23 kilometers (14 miles) from Margao, and around 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Panaji, the state capital. The airport handled about 7.6 million passengers in the fiscal year 2017-2018 and 8.36 million in the fiscal year 2019-2020.

FAQs Related to Top Airports In India