Delhi Airport Only Major Hub to Grow as Middle East Conflict Disrupts Indian Aviation

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East is casting a shadow over India's aviation network, with flight operations at five of the six major metro airports falling sharply in June and July compared with the same period last year. However, Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport has emerged as the lone exception, registering growth during both months.

Data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows that Chennai and Hyderabad were the worst-affected airports, each witnessing a decline of nearly 20 per cent in flight operations during the two-month period. Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru also recorded double-digit contractions, reflecting the broader strain on the sector.

In contrast, Delhi saw an 8 per cent increase in flight operations in June and a 2.5 per cent rise in July year-on-year. Its resilience is significant given its status as India's largest aviation hub, serving a vast domestic network and a large number of connecting passengers.

The disruptions are attributed to airspace restrictions linked to the Middle East conflict, which have forced airlines to reroute flights and undertake longer journeys on several international sectors. Uncertainty over travel to key destinations in the region has also weakened demand, leading some Indian carriers to reduce or suspend international services.

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 saw a broadly similar pattern, with operations falling by approximately 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 experienced 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 in June and 12.5 per cent in July.

The decline in airport operations coincided with a dip in domestic passenger traffic. According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Indian airlines carried approximately 12 million domestic passengers in July, a 4.8 per cent decrease from the 12.6 million recorded in the same month last year.

Despite the July slowdown, passenger traffic over the first seven months of 2026 remained marginally higher. Airlines carried 98.4 million passengers between January and July, compared with 97.78 million in the corresponding period of 2025, reflecting a growth of 0.64 per cent.

The weaker July numbers were visible across 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.

Despite lower traffic, the two largest airline groups gained market share in July. IndiGo's share rose to 67.4 per cent from 66.3 per cent in June, while the Air India Group edged up from 23.9 per cent to 24 per cent. Meanwhile, Akasa Air's 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 — declined 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.

Despite the broader pressure on the sector, scheduled domestic flight cancellations remained relatively limited. The overall cancellation rate stayed low, with technical problems cited as the biggest cause of cancellations, rather than the geopolitical situation. This suggests that the primary impact of the conflict has been on route planning and demand, rather than on day-to-day operational reliability.