- Flight operations at five major Indian airports fell sharply in June and July year-on-year
- Chennai and Hyderabad saw nearly 20% declines in flight operations during this period
- Domestic passenger traffic fell 4.8% in July compared to the previous year
The prolonged conflict in the Middle East is beginning to leave a visible mark on India's aviation network, with flight operations at five of the country's six major metro airports falling sharply in June and July compared to a year earlier.
Chennai and Hyderabad were the worst hit, with both airports recording declines of close to 20 per cent in flight operations during the two-month period. Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru also saw double-digit contractions, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Delhi, however, went against the trend. Flight operations at Indira Gandhi International Airport increased by 8 per cent in June and 2.5 per cent in July year-on-year, making it the only major metro airport to register growth.
The divergence comes as airlines contend with a series of disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict. Airspace restrictions have forced carriers to alter routes and take longer journeys on several international sectors, while uncertainty around travel to key overseas destinations has weakened demand. Some Indian airlines have also reduced or suspended international services.
Chennai, Hyderabad See Biggest Declines
Chennai recorded a 20 per cent year-on-year reduction in flight operations in June, followed by an 18.9 per cent decline in July.
Hyderabad posted a broadly similar fall, with operations down by around 20 per cent in June and nearly 19 per cent in July.
The impact was also pronounced at other major airports. Kolkata's flight operations dropped 13.2 per cent in June and 16.8 per cent in July, while Bengaluru recorded declines of 11.7 per cent and 10.1 per cent, respectively.
Mumbai, India's second-busiest airport, saw operations fall 10.4 per cent year-on-year in June and another 12.5 per cent in July.
Delhi was the lone exception among the six major metro airports. Its comparatively stronger performance is significant given its role as India's largest aviation hub, with a broad domestic network and a large volume of connecting passengers.
Domestic Air Traffic Also Takes A Hit
The fall in airport operations coincided with a decline in domestic passenger traffic.
Data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) shows that Indian airlines carried about 12 million domestic passengers in July, 4.8 per cent lower than the 12.6 million recorded in the same month last year.
The decline in July came despite passenger traffic remaining marginally higher over the first seven months of 2026. Airlines carried 98.4 million passengers between January and July, compared with 97.78 million in the corresponding period of 2025-a growth of 0.64 per cent.
The weaker July numbers were reflected in the performance of individual carriers.
IndiGo carried 8.08 million passengers during the month, down from 8.92 million in June. The Air India Group, comprising Air India and Air India Express, carried 2.88 million passengers, compared with 3.22 million a month earlier.
Akasa Air's passenger count fell to 665,000 from 861,000, while SpiceJet carried 187,000 passengers against 263,000 in June.
IndiGo, Air India Gain Share Despite Lower Traffic
The decline in passenger numbers did not translate into a loss of market share for the two largest airline groups.
IndiGo's share of the domestic market rose to 67.4 per cent in July from 66.3 per cent in June. The Air India Group also edged up, from 23.9 per cent to 24 per cent.
The gains came as Akasa Air's market share fell from 6.4 per cent to 5.5 per cent and SpiceJet's declined from 1.9 per cent to 1.6 per cent.
Passenger load factors – the proportion of available seats that were filled – fell for IndiGo, the Air India Group and Akasa Air. SpiceJet was the exception, with its load factor improving from 73.2 per cent in June to 74.7 per cent in July.
Cancellations Remain Low; Technical Problems Biggest Cause
Despite the broader pressure on the sector, scheduled domestic flight cancellations remained relatively limited.
The overall cancellation rate stood at 0.62 per cent in July, with technical issues emerging as the biggest contributor. They accounted for 39.9 per cent of all cancellations, followed by operational reasons at 27.4 per cent.
Weather was responsible for another 22.7 per cent of cancellations, according to the DGCA.
IndiGo Leads On Punctuality
IndiGo also emerged as the best performer on punctuality among scheduled domestic carriers during July.
At the 10 airports covered by the DGCA's on-time performance assessment, 91.2 per cent of IndiGo flights operated on time. Akasa Air followed at 90.8 per cent, while the Air India Group recorded an on-time performance (OTP) of 88.5 per cent.
Alliance Air's OTP stood at 76 per cent. SpiceJet recorded the lowest OTP among the airlines at 34.6 per cent.
The figures point to a marked shift in India's aviation landscape-while domestic passenger traffic has softened and international operations have been disrupted by geopolitical tensions, the impact has not been uniform across the country's major hubs. Delhi has so far managed to expand operations even as five other major airports recorded significant year-on-year contractions.
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