Tag Archives: aviation

As  per ICRA report, domestic air passenger traffic saw YoY growth of 8.6 per cent in comparison to 121 lakh in July 2023 and higher by 10 per cent than pre-Covid levels. However, it was estimated at 131 lakh in July 2024, 0.5 per cent lower vis-a-vis 132.1 lakh in June 2024.

The AAI’s draft of National Airports Development Plan has scribed its agenda to expand the airport count to 300 by 2047. As per the plan, around 70 airstrips can be developed into full-fledged airports that can handle narrow-body aircraft such as A320 or B737, and nearly 40 airstrips can be developed to handle smaller aircraft.

The newly appointed Civil Aviation Minister, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, said, “We want to make airfare affordable and want to make airways the new railways of India. Our agenda is clear.” He also announced that they will create a 100-day action plan to lead to a long-term vision for the sector aligned with the ‘Viksit Bharat’ plan.

Vumlunmang Vualnam, Secretary of Civil Aviation, Government of India said, “While we have 157 airstrips already, which are functional, which we are proud of, we have already started looking at the 453 full list of airstrips that exist in our country. We are considering to develop these as brownfield projects. We also look at the defense airfields to expand joint user concept.”

Amitabh Khosla, Country Director-India, IATA said that India’s air traffic had already surpassed 2019 levels, both for domestic and international flights, in 2023 itself.  “So certainly, we are witnessing rapid growth, as demonstrated in the unveiling video of the 2025 AGM. There is a significance amount of activity and technology driving aviation growth in India, ” he added.

Olivier Ponti, Director of Intelligence & Marketing, Forwardkeys, shared that high airfare posed a significant obstacle recently due to strong demand and limited supply. As capacity returns, airfare is beginning to see a dip, although remaining 4% higher than 2019 levels by the end of April 2024. Despite some fluctuations, the global trend indicates a positive shift.

Cambodia Angkor Air will start its first direct route between Phnom Penh and New Delhi from 16 June with 4  flights per week, heralding a new era of seamless air travel between India and Cambodia. David Yuhong Zhan, CEO, Cambodia Angkor Air, said, “We plan to open new routes connecting Siem Reap to Delhi and Phnom Penh to other cities in India soon.”

ICRA’s report on India’s aviation industry says, April 2024 saw 132.8 lakh domestic air passengers, which was 0.6 per cent lower than 133.7 lakh in March 2024. However, it grew by 3 per cent on a y-o-y basis and was higher by 21 per cent than pre-COVID levels. The airlines’ capacity deployment in April 2024 was higher than April 2023 by 2 per cent.

As per International Air Transport Association (IATA), in March 2024, there was 13.8 per cent increase in global passenger demand vis-a-vis the same month in 2023. International passenger demand saw a rise of 18.9 per cent compared to March 2023, while domestic demand rose to 6.6 per cent, showcasing a positive landscape for aviation industry.

As per CAPA India, almost 250 narrowbody aircraft are likely to be deployed on routes up to 5 to 7 hours range from India. This would be 2.5 times the current deployment of aircraft. This expansion will create significant network deployment and strategic challenges for airlines to be able to find sufficient markets for such capacity.