Indira Gandhi International Airport

Indira Gandhi International Airport
IGI Airport logo
Aerial view of Indira Gandhi International Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerAirports Authority of India[1]
OperatorDelhi International Airport Limited (DIAL)
ServesNational Capital Region (NCR)
LocationPalam, Delhi, India
Opened1962; 62 years ago (1962)
Hub for
Operating base for
Elevation AMSL237 m / 777 ft
Coordinates28°34′07″N 077°06′44″E / 28.56861°N 77.11222°E / 28.56861; 77.11222
Websitewww.newdelhiairport.in
Map
DEL/VIDP is located in Delhi
DEL/VIDP
DEL/VIDP
Location of airport in India
DEL/VIDP is located in India
DEL/VIDP
DEL/VIDP
DEL/VIDP (India)
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
09/27 2,816 9,239 Asphalt
10/28 3,813 12,510 Asphalt
11R/29L 4,430 14,534 Asphalt
11L/29R 4,400 14,436 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2023 – March 2024)
Passengers73,673,708 (Increase 12.8%)
International passengers19,470,161 (Increase 24.4%)
Aircraft movements442,488 (Increase 2.9%)
Cargo tonnage1,003,306 (Increase 12%)
Source: AAI[3][4][5]

Indira Gandhi International Airport (IATA: DEL, ICAO: VIDP) is the primary international airport serving New Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of 5,106 acres (2,066 ha),[6] is situated in Palam, Delhi, 15 km (9.3 mi) southwest of the New Delhi Railway Station and 16 km (9.9 mi) from New Delhi city centre.[7][8]

Named after Indira Gandhi (1917–1984), the former Prime Minister of India, it is the busiest airport of India in terms of passenger traffic since 2009.[9] It is also the busiest airport in the country in terms of cargo traffic. In the financial year of 2023–24, the airport handled 7.36 crore (73.6 million) passengers, the highest ever in the airport's history.[3][10] As of 2024, it is the tenth-busiest airport in the world, as per the latest rankings issued by the UK-based air consultancy firm, OAG.[11][12] It is the second-busiest airport in the world by seating capacity,[13][14][15] having a seating capacity of over 36 lakh (3.6 million) seats, and the busiest airport in Asia by passenger traffic, handling over 6.55 crore (65.5 million) passengers in 2023.[14][15] In fact, it is routinely one of the busiest airports in the world, according to the Airports Council International rankings.[16]

The airport was operated by the Indian Air Force before its management was transferred to the Airports Authority of India.[17] In May 2006, the management of the airport was passed over to Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), a consortium led by the GMR Group.[18] In September 2008, the airport inaugurated a 4,430 m (14,530 ft) runway. With the commencement of operations at Terminal 3 in 2010, it became India's and South Asia's largest aviation hub. The Terminal 3 building has a capacity to handle 3.4 crore (34 million) passengers annually and was the world's 8th largest passenger terminal upon completion.[8] The airport inaugurated a 4,400 m (14,400 ft) runway and the 2.1 km (1.3 mi) Eastern Cross Taxiways (ECT) with dual parallel taxiways in July 2023.[19] The airport uses an advanced system called Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) to help keep takeoffs and landings timely and predictable.[20]

The other airport serving NCR is the Hindon Airport, which is much smaller in size and primarily handles regional flights out of the city under the UDAN Scheme.[21] The former airport, which used to be the primary airport of NCR, Safdarjung Airport is now used mainly by VVIP helicopters and small charter helicopters due to its short runway. To stimulate the increasing traffic, a second airport, Noida International Airport, is being constructed to offset the load of Indira Gandhi International Airport.[22]

  1. ^ "List of Indian Airports" (PDF).
  2. ^ "Zooom restarts services with Delhi-Ayodhya flight; plans fleet expansion". The Times of India. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Annexure III – Passenger Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Annexure II – Aircraft Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Annexure IV – Freight Movement Data" (PDF). aai.aero. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  6. ^ About IGI Airport from the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ eAIP India, OF Airports Authority of India, 1 April 2012, archived from the original on 31 March 2014
  8. ^ a b "Fact Sheet". Newdelhiairport.in. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  9. ^ "Delhi Airport busier than Mumbai by 40 flights a day". The Indian Express. 16 August 2009. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  10. ^ "Leading airports across India in financial year 2020, by number of passengers handled (in millions)". Statista. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  11. ^ Saurabh Sinha (21 December 2022). "Up three spots, Delhi's IGI Airport is now world's 7th busiest airport | Delhi News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Delhi's IGI airport is the 10th busiest airport in the world: Report". The Indian Express. 18 April 2024. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  13. ^ "IGI airport world's second busiest in seat capacity, flight frequency". The Times of India. 3 May 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  14. ^ a b "Delhi's IGI airport is now world's second busiest airport". India Today. 2 May 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Busiest Airports in the World 2023". OAG Aviation. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  16. ^ Josephs, Leslie (15 April 2024). "World's busiest airports show surge in international travel. Here are the rankings". CNBC. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  17. ^ "Why they should stay with the Air Force". Business Line. 9 April 2011. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  18. ^ "Mumbai, Delhi airport management to be handed over to pvt cos". Outlook. 2 May 2006. Archived from the original on 14 May 2006. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  19. ^ "Photos: Delhi airport first in country to have four runways, elevated taxiways". The Times of India. 14 July 2023. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  20. ^ "Advance System at IGIA" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, Government of India, Ministry of Civil Aviation. 12 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
  21. ^ "Delhi's second airport to operate first flight from tomorrow". 10 October 2019.
  22. ^ "Jewar international airport: Inauguration of Jewar airport by end of December: Nandi | Allahabad News – Times of India". The Times of India. 31 October 2018. Retrieved 18 December 2019.