How Delhi Airport's Terminals T1, T2 And T3 Became Hub For 100 Million Passengers

Delhi Airport is one of the busiest not just in India but across the world. Flyers in transit, travelling abroad (or across the country), or coming back to their homeland keep its terminals working 24×7 and 365 days a year.

To manage lakhs of passengers throughout the year, the airport operates three terminals - T1, T2, and T3. Each terminal was built with a different vision, but with the same goal: to manage growing passenger traffic and increase the overall handling capacity of Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport.

While the number of flyers rushing through the terminals and the cargo handled by the airport is mind‑blowing, the hidden story behind the evolution of T1, T2, and T3 is equally fascinating.

How T1 And T2 Evolved

Rishabh Wadhwa, a digital content creator, shared in one of his videos, "There are three terminals of the Delhi Airport, and they're all very different from each other. Let's start with terminal one."

He shared that T1 was originally built by the British and was referred to as Palam Airport at the time, and it reportedly served as a Royal Air Force base during World War II. After Independence, the Indian Air Force took over, but the rising demand for civil aviation led to Palam Airport becoming a passenger airport in 1962.

In 1969, a new passenger terminal was constructed. The terminal was renovated recently and boasts a pier-shaped design in which passengers "head down an axis to reach their planes." 

He added, "This is called a Pier-shaped design, where you have this long corridor with planes on both sides like boats at a pier."

Reacting to the content creator's post, an Instagram user wrote, "Cool cool. BUT, the drawing of the pier design of T1 that gets highlighted is wrong, because the left door of the aeroplanes ALWAYS opens (port side)."

In 1986, the Palam Airport was renamed Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), and T2 was inaugurated. "This terminal was made to ease the load on T1. This one has a few aero bridges at the edges of the building," he explained.

This is why passengers travelling via T2 often use buses, which take them to the aircraft for boarding and bring them back to the arrival gates.

The Rise Of T3 Terminal Of Delhi Airport

Let's talk about the most famous terminal - T3. It was launched in 2010 to handle the massive passenger influx driven by the Commonwealth Games. "The design here is very interesting. where this airport too follows the pier-shaped design, but these piers are spread out in two wings emerging from a central space," Rishabh Wadhwa added.

By 2015, T3 became the best airport in the 25-40 million passenger category. As aviation traffic continued to rise, T3 underwent further expansion, with some domestic piers converted to accommodate international traffic.

Today, T3 handles both international and domestic flyers. The T1 terminal is for budget-friendly domestic airlines, and flyers can avail self-check-in kiosks for a hassle-free experience. The T2 terminal also handles domestic flights and serves as a backup to T1 during busy periods.

Speaking about the T3 terminal, a user wrote, "T3 is an emotion for Indians living abroad."

The evolution of T1, T2, and T3 is what enabled IGI Airport to become a 100‑million‑flyer hub in 2023. By 2025, IGIA joined the elite 100‑million‑plus club of global airports, with an annual passenger-handling capacity of 109 million. According to data from the Official Airline Guide and airport operators, only six airports worldwide belong to this exclusive group.

From T1-T2, T1-T3, T3-T1, and T2-T1, passengers can transit using inter-terminal shuttle services. From T3 to T2, travellers can walk or use a shuttle. Metro feeder busy services are also available from T1-T2 or T2-T1, and passengers can always book cabs to travel from one terminal to the next.

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