Delhi Airport now handles nearly 56,000 transfer passengers daily, cementing its role as India’s leading transit gateway.
Data from GMR Airports Ltd shows that more than one in every four air passengers now transits through Delhi Airport.
In May 2026, Delhi Airport handled approximately 1.9 million transfer passengers, accounting for 27 per cent of the airport’s total traffic of 7.14 million. This marked a notable rise from April 2026, when transfer passenger volumes stood at 1.54 million (23 per cent). The share of transfer passengers has climbed from around 20 per cent in May 2025 to 27 per cent in May 2026, year-on-year.
GMR Airports is the majority owner of Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), the concessionaire operating Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) under a long‑term agreement with the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
Delhi Airport now handles nearly 56,000 transfer passengers a day, highlighting its growing role as a preferred transit gateway connecting destinations across India and the world.
Pradeep Panicker, CEO of DIAL, said, “With India emerging as one of the fastest‑growing aviation markets globally, Delhi Airport is uniquely positioned to serve as a key gateway connecting domestic and international networks. Even as we navigate a turbulent aviation environment marked by the Middle East crisis and high ATF prices, DIAL continues to work closely with both domestic and international carriers to strengthen connectivity, align networks, benefit transfer passengers, and sustain its position as one of the largest transfer hubs in the region.”
Domestic‑to‑domestic transfers remain the largest contributor, accounting for 61 per cent of total transfer traffic. This reinforces Delhi Airport’s critical role in connecting metropolitan cities with emerging economic centres, tourism destinations, and regions across the country. Popular transfer routes include Pune-Delhi-Srinagar, Srinagar-Delhi-Pune, and Kolkata-Delhi-Srinagar.
International transfer traffic is also rising, with key flows on routes such as Ahmedabad-Delhi-Toronto, Phuket-Delhi-London Heathrow, Dubai-Delhi-Patna, and Kathmandu-Delhi-Tokyo. This highlights Delhi’s increasing importance as a strategic gateway linking South Asia with major destinations across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia‑Pacific region.
The hub ecosystem is further strengthened by leading airline partners, with IndiGo, Air India, and Air India Express accounting for a substantial share of transfer traffic through Delhi.