Airport passenger traffic surging, Delhi airport tops global list

As per the latest edition of Airports Council International’s (ACI) World Airport Traffic Report, airports in Bengaluru and Delhi showed the fastest growth in passenger traffic in 2016 among global peers, aided by a surge in domestic air travel and introduction of new routes. Delhi, which recorded 21% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth, bagged the first position ahead of Incheon (South Korea) and Kunming (China), among airports handling 40-million-plus passengers a year. Mumbai airport, which registered a growth of 9.9% and took the fifth position.

With a 22.5% growth, Bengaluru airport was ranked first among airports handling 15-million-plus passengers annually. The spike in passenger traffic growth at Indian airports augurs well for the Indian airport media advertising industry.

Business Standard reports that domestic air traffic rose 23% y-o-y to 99.8 million, making India the fastest-growing air travel market in 2016. In the first eight months of 2017, traffic rose nearly 17%, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The GMR Group plans to invest Rs 16,000 crore (Rs 160 billion) for expansion of Delhi airport that will double the capacity of domestic terminal T1, increase the capacity of international terminal T3, lay a new runway, and build a new terminal over the next seven years.

Also, 25 of 126 airports managed by AAI have reached saturation. Over the next two to three years, seven more airports -- including Varanasi, Raipur and Indore -- will reach peak capacity. Both Chennai and Kolkata will require a second airport, and the AAI has asked state governments to identify land for the same.

ACI’s flagship publication, representing over 2,400 airports in 175 countries worldwide, reveals that many mature market airports have made large strides in their throughput volumes.