Delhi Airport records 34% surge in East-West transit passenger traffic

Air India and IndiGo handle over 90 per cent of Delhi's East-West transit traffic as DIAL ramps up routes to Thailand, Japan, China, and the UK

Delhi Airport handled about 670,000 East- West transit passengers between September 2024 and August 2025, marking a 34 per cent Y-o-Y rise, operator Delhi International Aiport Ltd (Ltd) said on Monday.

 

In a statement, that Air India accounted for 67 per cent of the east–west transit traffic, followed by IndiGo with 25 per cent, the GMR Group-led DIAL mentioned in a statement. Together, the two carriers handle over 90 per cent of total passenger traffic through Delhi.

 

Delhi has also strengthened its position as India’s leading gateway to Thailand, operating 120 weekly departures to Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi and Don Mueang, representing 26 per cent of India’s total flights to Thailand. A new route to Krabi started on October 26, DIAL mentioned.

 

Beyond Thailand, Delhi Airport’s Southeast Asia network continues to expand. Air India plans to increase flights to Kuala Lumpur and Denpasar (Bali) from seven to 10 per week within the next one month, while IndiGo will begin daily services to Hanoi from December 20 and to Guangzhou from November 10. This Delhi-Guangzhou flight would be the first scheduled passenger service between India and China since COVID-19.

 

Eastward, Delhi leads India’s air connectivity to Japan with 28 weekly flights to Tokyo’s Haneda and Narita airports, representing 70 per cent of all India-Japan flights. Japan Airlines will add a new daily Delhi–Tokyo Narita service from January 18, 2026.

 

On the western side, Delhi airport accounts for 38 per cent of all India-UK flights. Air India will soon introduce a fourth daily service to London Heathrow, while IndiGo will launch its first long-haul international service between Delhi and Manchester from November 15 using a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

 

“Whether it’s business travel to London, tourism to Bangkok, or cultural exchange with Tokyo, Delhi Airport connects India to the world -- truly serving as the Gateway between the East and the West,” said Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO of DIAL.

 

On October 29, Jaipuriar said  DIAL aims to boost the Delhi airport’s annual passenger capacity by about 20 per cent -- from 105 million to 125 million -- by 2029-30, without immediately replacing the existing Terminal 2 (T2).