Indira Gandhi International Airport

Indira Gandhi International Airport
Satellite image of the airport
IATA: DEL ICAO: VIDP
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	Airports Authority of India
Operator	Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) GMR Group (74%) Airports Authority of India (26%)
Serves	National Capital Region
Location	Palam, Delhi, India
Opened	1962 (1962)
Hub for	Air India Alliance Air FedEx Express Quikjet Airlines
Elevation AMSL	237 m / 777 ft
Coordinates	28°34′07″N 077°06′44″E
Website	www.newdelhiairport.in
Map
DEL/VIDP Location of airport in India DEL/VIDP DEL/VIDP (India)
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 09/27 2,816 9,239 Asphalt 10/28 3,813 12,510 Asphalt 11R/29L 4,430 14,534 Asphalt 11L/29R 4,400 14,436 Asphalt
Statistics (April 2024 – March 2025)
Passengers 79,259,890 ( 7.6%) International passengers 21,561,977 ( 10.7%) Aircraft movements 468,822 ( 6%) Cargo tonnage 1,109,519 ( 10.6%)
Source: AAI

Indira Gandhi International Airport (IATA: DEL, ICAO: VIDP), known as Palam Airport until 1986, is the primary international airport serving New Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of 5,106 acres (2,066 ha), is situated in Palam, Delhi (hence its former name), 15 km (9.3 mi) southwest of the New Delhi Railway Station and 16 km (9.9 mi) from the city centre.

Named after Indira Gandhi (1917–1984), the former Prime Minister of India, it is the busiest airport of India in terms of passenger traffic since 2009. It is also the busiest airport in the country in terms of cargo traffic. In the financial year of 2024–25, the airport handled over 7.92 crore (79.2 million) passengers, the highest ever in the airport's history. As of 2025, it is the ninth-busiest airport in the world, as per the latest rankings issued by the UK-based air consultancy firm, OAG. It is the second-busiest airport in the world by seating capacity, having a seating capacity of over 36 lakh (3.6 million) seats, and the third-busiest airport in Asia, handling over 7.78 crore (77.8 million) passengers in 2024. In fact, it is routinely one of the busiest airports in the world, according to the Airports Council International rankings.

The airport was operated by the Indian Air Force before its management was transferred to the Airports Authority of India. In May 2006, the management of the airport was passed over to Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), a consortium led by the GMR Group. In September 2008, the airport inaugurated a 4,430 m (14,530 ft) runway. With the commencement of operations at Terminal 3 in 2010, it became India's and South Asia's largest aviation hub. The Terminal 3 building has a capacity to handle 3.4 crore (34 million) passengers annually and was the world's 8th largest passenger terminal upon completion. The airport inaugurated a 4,400 m (14,400 ft) runway and the 2.1 km (1.3 mi) Eastern Cross Taxiways (ECT) with dual parallel taxiways in July 2023. The airport uses an advanced system called Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) to help keep takeoffs and landings timely and predictable.

The other airport serving NCR is the Hindon Airport, which primarily handles regional and domestic flights to major metro cities out of the city under the UDAN Scheme. The former airport, which used to be the primary airport of NCR, Safdarjung Airport is now used mainly by VVIP helicopters and small charter helicopters due to its short runway. To offset the burgeoning traffic, the construction of a new airport, Noida International Airport, is currently underway.

History

Lockheed Hudson Mark VI of No. 194 Squadron RAF at RAF Station Palam

Palam Airport was established by the British Raj as a base for the Royal Indian Air Force during World War II to support Allied military operations in Asia. After Indian Independence, the Royal Indian Air Force, which was later rechristened as the Indian Air Force, took over the airport.

In 1962, commercial passenger operations were relocated from Safdarjung Airport (Delhi's first airport) to Palam Airport. At that time, Palam had a peak capacity of approximately 1,300 passengers per hour. In 1979–80, a total of 30 lakh (3 million) domestic and international passengers flew into and out of Palam Airport. Owing to an increase in air traffic in the '70s and '80s, an additional terminal with nearly four times the area of the old Palam terminal was constructed. With the inauguration of this new international terminal, Terminal 2, on 2 May 1986, the airport was renamed as Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). However, the airport's ICAO code, VIDP, remains associated with its old name.

The old domestic airport (Palam) is known as Terminal 1 and was divided into separate buildings – 1A, 1B, and 1C. Blocks 1A and 1B were used to handle international operations while domestic operations took place in Block 1C. Block 1A and 1B later became dedicated terminals for domestic airlines and are currently closed down. It is planned that they will be demolished after the construction of newer terminals. Block 1C was also turned into a domestic arrivals terminal, and was rebuilt and opened on 24 February 2022. The newly constructed domestic departures block 1D is now used by domestic low-cost airlines (IndiGo, and SpiceJet). There is also a separate technical area for VIP passengers. The domestic arrivals terminal 1C was demolished and rebuilt into a brand-new domestic arrivals terminal. For this expansion work, GoAir and select flights of IndiGo were moved to Terminal 2 as well as select flights of SpiceJet and IndiGo to Terminal 3.

In October 2001, Canada 3000 commenced a flight to Toronto. This was the first nonstop service between India and North America. Russia's decision to open its airspace after the Cold War allowed the airline to save time by flying a direct route over the Arctic. Even though the 11 September attacks had precipitated a global decline in air travel, Canada 3000 was hoping that the service would help it improve its financial position. Nevertheless, the company collapsed one month later.

Significant growth in the Indian aviation industry led to a major increase in passenger traffic. The capacity of Terminal 1 was estimated to be 71.5 lakh (7.15 million) passengers per annum (mppa). The actual throughput for 2005/06 was an estimated 1.04 crore (10.4 million) passengers. Including the then closed down international terminal (Terminal 2), the airport had a total capacity of 1.25 crore (12.5 million) passengers per year, whereas the total passenger traffic in 2006/07 was 1.65 crore (16.5 million) passengers per year. In 2008, the total passenger count at the airport reached 2.4 crore (23.97 million). To ease the traffic congestion on the existing terminals and in preparation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, a much larger Terminal 3 was constructed and inaugurated on 3 July 2010. The new terminal's construction took 37 months for completion and this terminal increased the airport's total passenger capacity by 34 million.

Apart from the two budget domestic airlines handled by Terminals 1 and 2, all other airlines operate their flights from Terminal 3. In June 2022, Delhi International Airport became India's first to run entirely on Hydro Power and solar energy.

Ownership

On 31 January 2006, the aviation minister Praful Patel announced that the empowered Group of Ministers have agreed to sell the management-rights of Delhi Airport to the DIAL consortium and the Mumbai Airport to the GVK Group. On 2 May 2006, the management of Delhi and Mumbai airports were handed over to the private consortia. Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) was a consortium of the GMR Group (54%), Fraport (10%) and Malaysia Airports (10%), and the Airports Authority of India retains a 26% stake.

In May 2015, Malaysia Airports chose to exit from DIAL venture and sold its 10% stake to GMR Infra for $79 million. Following this GMR Group's stake at DIAL increased to 64%. In 2024 Fraport sold its 10% shareholding to GMR Group.

Facilities

VIDP Airport Map

Runways

Interior of the domestic departures terminal

Runways at IGI Airport

Runway number	Length	Width	Approach lights/ILS
11R/29L	4,430 m (14,530 ft)	60 m (200 ft)	CAT III-B / CAT II
11L/29R	4,400 m (14,400 ft)	45 m (148 ft)	CAT III-B / CAT II
10/28	3,813 m (12,510 ft)	46 m (151 ft)	CAT I / CAT III-B
09/27	2,816 m (9,239 ft)	45 m (148 ft)	CAT I / CAT I

Delhi Airport has four near-parallel runways: runway 11R/29L, 4,430 m × 60 m (14,530 ft × 200 ft), runway 11L/29R, 4,400 m × 45 m (14,436 ft × 148 ft), runway 10/28, 3,813 m × 46 m (12,510 ft × 151 ft), and runway 09/27, 2,816 m × 45 m (9,239 ft × 148 ft). The 09/27 runway of the Delhi Airport was the airport's first-ever runway; the British constructed the 2,816 metre-long and 60 metre-wide runway in the pre-independence era and used it during World War II. In addition to Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport in Lucknow and Jaipur Airport in Jaipur, Delhi Airport is the only airport in India to have been equipped with the CAT III-B ILS, as of 2017. In the winter of 2005, there were a record number of disruptions at Delhi Airport due to fog/smog. Since then some domestic airlines have trained their pilots to operate under CAT-II conditions of a minimum 350 m (1,150 ft) visibility. On 31 March 2006, IGI became the first Indian airport to operate two runways simultaneously following a test run involving a SpiceJet plane landing on runway 28 and a Jet Airways plane taking off from runway 27 at the same time.

The initially proposed mode involving simultaneous takeoffs in westerly flow to increase handling traffic capacity caused several near misses over the west side of the airport where the centrelines of runways 10/28 and 9/27 intersect. The runway use was changed to segregate dependent mode on 25 December 2007, which was a few days after a near miss involving an Airbus A330-200 of Qatar Airways and an IndiGo A320 aircraft. The new method involved the use of runway 28 for all departures and runway 27 for all arrivals. This more streamlined model was adopted during day hours (– 2300 0600 – 2300 IST) until 24 September 2008.

On 21 August 2008, the airport inaugurated its third runway, 11R/29L, costing ₹1,000 crore and 4,430 m (14,534 ft) long. The runway has one of the world's longest paved threshold displacements of 1,460 m (4,790 ft). This, in turn decreases the available landing length on runway 29L to 2,970 m (9,744 ft). The reason for the long threshold displacement is due to the presence of a 263 m high Shiv statue, which is located near runway 29L. The runway increased the airport's capacity to handle up to 100 flights from the previous 45–60 flights per hour. The new runway was opened for commercial operations on 25 September 2008 and gradually began full round-the-clock operations by the end of October of the same year.

Since 2012, all three runways were operated simultaneously to handle traffic during day hours. Only runways 11R/29L and 10/28 are operated during night (2300–0600 IST) hours with single runway landing restriction during westerly traffic flow that is rotated late night (0300 IST) and reversed weekly to distribute and mitigate night time landing noise over nearby residential areas.

To cater for the demand of increasing air traffic, the master plan for the construction of a fourth parallel runway next to the existing runway 11R/29L was cleared in 2017. along with the Eastern Cross Taxiways (ECT) - a pair of elevated parallel taxiways linking the northern part of the airport with the southern runways. It will be elevated as it will pass over the airport approach roads. It will be 2.1 km (1.3 mi) long and both the taxiways will be 44 m (144 ft) wide, with a 47 m (154 ft) wide gap separating the taxiways, making it capable of handling Airbus A380 and Boeing 747 type aircraft. It will help flights reducing duration to reach the southern runways from 9–10 minutes to only two minutes, as well as reducing pollution and traffic. The fourth runway and the ECT was inaugurated on 14 July 2023.

Terminals

Terminal 1D at Indira Gandhi International Airport

Inside view of Terminal 3 at Indira Gandhi International Airport

IGI Airport serves as a major hub or a focus destination for several Indian carriers including Air India, Alliance Air, IndiGo, and SpiceJet. Approximately 80 airlines serve this airport. At present, there are three actively scheduled passenger terminals, as well as a cargo terminal.

In 2021, DIAL introduced an e-boarding facility for passengers at all the three terminals of the airport, by which all boarding gates will have contactless e-boarding gates with boarding card scanners, which will allow passengers to flash their physical or e-boarding cards to verify flight details in order to proceed for security checks. Terminal 3 is an integrated terminal used for both international and domestic flights. The Indian carriers operating international flights are Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet. The domestic side of Terminal 3 is used by Air India, Air India Express, and select flights of SpiceJet and IndiGo. Select flights of IndiGo use Terminal 2 for their domestic operations.

Currently operational terminals

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 is used by the low cost domestic carriers, such as SpiceJet and IndiGo. In 2022, Terminal 1D was fully expanded with an arrivals hall, with the goal of enhancing its annual passenger handling capacity from the previous 1.8 crore (18 million) to 4 crore (40 million). In 2025, after a brief period, Terminal 1 has now re-opened following major renovations and an expansion including a 'guitar-neck' shaped pier section. As a result, the Terminal is now a singular building encompassing the area of previous terminals 1A through D.

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 was opened on 1 May 1986, at a cost of ₹95 crores and was used for international flights until July 2010 when operations shifted to Terminal 3. After this, the terminal remained operational for only three months per year. In 2017, after revamping Terminal 2 at a cost of ₹100 crores, DIAL shifted all operations of GoAir and select operations of IndiGo to that terminal in order to continue expansion work of Terminal 1. As of October 2025, all Terminal 2 renovations are complete and it is open for operations.

Terminal 3

Sculptures in Terminal 3: Hindu solar deity Surya (upper left), Surya Namaskara asanas (upper right), and hasta mudras or hand gestures extending from a wall over the immigration counters (bottom)

Interior of Terminal 3

Designed by HOK working in consultation with Mott MacDonald, Terminal 3 is a two-tier building spread over an area of 54 lakh (5.4 million) square feet (approx 502,000 square metre ) making it the 15th largest terminal in the world, with the lower floor being the arrivals area, and the upper floor being a departures area. This terminal has 168 check-in counters, 78 aerobridges at 48 contact stands, 54 parking bays, 95 immigration counters, 18 X-ray screening areas, shorter waiting times, duty-free shops, and other features.The international flights leave from gates 1-26 (gates 2, 4, 6 are bus gates) and the domestic flights leave from gates 27-62 (gates 42, 44 are bus gates) This new terminal was timed to be completed for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, which was held in Delhi and is connected to Delhi by an eight-lane Delhi–Gurgaon Expressway and the Delhi Metro through its Airport Express (Orange Line). The terminal was officially inaugurated on 3 July 2010. All international airlines shifted their operations to the new terminal in late July 2010 and all full service domestic carriers in November 2010. The arrival area is equipped with 14 baggage carousels. Terminal 3 has India's first automated parking management and guidance system in a multi-level car park, which comprises seven levels and a capacity of 4,300 cars. Terminal 3 forms the first phase of the airport expansion which tentatively includes the construction of additional passenger and cargo terminals (Terminal 4, 5, and 6).

Domestic full-service airline Air India operates from Terminal 3. Air India Express, although a low cost airline, also operates its domestic flights from this terminal. Some flights of SpiceJet and IndiGo were also shifted to Terminal 3 temporarily for the expansion of Terminal 1.

On 16 December 2024, the Indira Gandhi International airport became the first in India to connect directly to 150 airports or destinations — both domestic and international — with the launch of a Thai AirAsia X direct flight between Delhi and Bangkok's Don Mueang airport.

General Aviation Terminal

India's first general aviation terminal was commissioned in this airport in September 2020. The terminal caters to support the movement and processing of passengers flying through chartered flights or private jets from the airport.

Air cargo complex

The air cargo complex is located at a distance of 1 km (0.62 mi) from Terminal 3. It consists of separate brownfield and greenfield cargo terminals. The cargo operations at the brownfield terminal are managed by Celebi Delhi Cargo Management India Pvt. Ltd., which is a joint venture between Delhi International Airport Private Ltd (DIAL) and the Turkish company Celebi Ground Handling (CGH). CGH was awarded the contract to develop, modernise, and finance the existing cargo terminal and to operate the terminal for a period of twenty-five years by DIAL in November 2009. It started its operations in June 2010. In addition to the existing terminal, a new greenfield terminal is being developed in phases by Delhi Cargo Service Centre (DCSC), also a joint venture between DIAL and Cargo Service Center (CSC). The greenfield cargo terminal project consists of two terminals built over a plot of 48,000 square metres and 28,500 square metres, respectively. Phase 1A of the project has been completed and is fully operational. Once the entire project is completed, these two new terminals will have an annual handling capacity of 12.5 lakh (1.25 million) tonnes. The cargo operations of the airport received "e-Asia 2007" award in 2007 for "Implementation of e-Commerce / Electronic Data Interchange in Air Cargo Sector".

Previous terminals

Terminal 1A

Terminal 1A was built in 1982 as a temporary structure for international VIPs arriving for the 1983 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting held in Delhi. After the event, the building was unused until Indian Airlines started operating Airbus A320 operations in 1988. It had to be refurbished after a fire gutted the interiors in October 1996 and DIAL significantly upgraded the terminal. The terminal was closed after Air India shifted operations to the new Terminal 3 on 11 November 2010. DIAL had earlier planned to use the terminal for Haj operations as well as for charter planes; however, it never materialised. The terminal lay unused until 2018, when DIAL decided to demolish it.

Terminal 1B

Terminal 1B was also built in the late 1980s and was used only for domestic departures. Upon the opening of the new domestic departures Terminal 1D in 2009, Terminal 1B was closed and is expected to be demolished on the completion of newer terminals.

Terminal 1C

Interior of Terminal 1D

Terminal 1C was also built in the late 1980s and was used only for domestic arrivals. The terminal has been upgraded with a newly expanded greeting area and a larger luggage reclaim area with eight belts. Terminal 1C was shut down, torn, and rebuilt into a brand new domestic arrivals hall on 24 February 2022.

Terminal 1D

Terminal 1D was developed by DIAL and inaugurated on 27 February 2009 as a domestic departures terminal with a total floor space of 53,000 m² (570,000 sq ft) and a capacity to handle 1.5 crore (15 million) passengers per year. The terminal commenced operations on 19 April 2009. It had 72 Common Use Terminal Equipment (CUTE) enabled check-in counters, 16 self check-in counters, and 16 security channels.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Airlines	Destinations
Aero Nomad Airlines	Bishkek
Aeroflot	Moscow–Sheremetyevo
Air Arabia	Sharjah
Air Astana	Almaty
Air Cambodia	Phnom Penh
Air Canada	Toronto–Pearson Seasonal: Montréal–Trudeau
Air China	Beijing–Capital (resumes 21 April 2026)
Air France	Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air India	Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Amsterdam, Aurangabad, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Bhuj, Birmingham, Chandigarh, Chennai, Chicago–O’Hare, Coimbatore, Colombo–Bandaranaike, Copenhagen, Dehradun, Denpasar, Dhaka, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Gaya, Goa–Dabolim, Goa–Mopa, Guwahati, Hanoi (begins 1 May 2026), Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jeddah, Kathmandu, Kochi, Kolkata, Kuala Lumpur–International, Leh, London–Heathrow, Lucknow, Malé, Manila, Melbourne, Milan–Malpensa, Mumbai–Shivaji, Nagpur, Newark, New York–JFK, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Patna, Phuket, Port Blair, Prayagraj, Pune, Raipur, Rajkot, Riyadh, Rome–Fiumicino (resumes 25 March 2026), San Francisco, Seoul–Incheon, Shanghai–Pudong, Singapore, Srinagar, Sydney, Tel Aviv, Thiruvananthapuram, Tokyo–Haneda, Toronto–Pearson, Udaipur, Vadodara, Vancouver, Varanasi, Vienna, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Yangon, Zurich
Air India Express	Abu Dhabi, Amritsar, Ayodhya, Bagdogra, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Dammam, Goa–Dabolim, Goa-Mopa, Guwahati, Imphal, Jaipur, Jammu, Jodhpur, Kuwait City, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Mumbai–Navi, Mumbai–Shivaji, Muscat, Patna, Port Blair, Pune, Ranchi, Sharjah, Srinagar, Surat, Udaipur, Varanasi
Air Mauritius	Mauritius
AirAsia X	Kuala Lumpur–International
Akasa Air	Ahmedabad, Ayodhya, Bagdogra, Bengaluru, Darbhanga, Goa-Mopa, Gorakhpur, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai-Chhatrapati Shivaji, Mumbai–Navi, Pune, Srinagar
All Nippon Airways	Tokyo–Haneda
Alliance Air	Bathinda, Bilaspur, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Dharamshala, Gorakhpur, Hisar, Indore, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Kullu, Prayagraj, Shimla
American Airlines	New York–JFK
Ariana Afghan Airlines	Kabul
Azerbaijan Airlines	Baku
Batik Air Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur–International
Belavia	Minsk
Bhutan Airlines	Kathmandu
Biman Bangladesh Airlines	Dhaka
British Airways	London–Heathrow
Cathay Pacific	Hong Kong
Centrum Air	Tashkent
China Eastern Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
Drukair	Paro
Egyptair	Cairo
Emirates	Dubai–International
Ethiopian Airlines	Addis Ababa
Etihad Airways	Abu Dhabi
Finnair	Helsinki
flydubai	Dubai–International
Flynas	Riyadh
Gulf Air	Bahrain
IndiGo	Amritsar, Athens, Aurangabad, Ayodhya, Baku, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Belgaum, Bengaluru, Bikaner, Bhopal, Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Coimbatore, Dammam, Darbhanga, Dehradun, Denpasar, Deoghar, Dhaka, Dharamshala, Dibrugarh, Dimapur, Doha, Dubai, Durgapur, Gaya, Goa–Dabolim, Goa–Mopa, Gorakhpur, Guangzhou, Guwahati, Gwalior, Hanoi, Hong Kong, Hubli, Istanbul, Itanagar, Jaisalmer, Jeddah, Jharsuguda, Kannur, Kanpur, Kathmandu, Khajuraho, Krabi, Kuwait City, London–Heathrow, Manchester, Mumbai–Navi, Nashik, Pantnagar, Phuket, Rajkot, Riyadh, Singapore, Tiruchirappalli, Vijayawada
Iraqi Airways	Baghdad, Basra
ITA Airways	Rome–Fiumicino
Japan Airlines	Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita
Jazeera Airways	Kuwait City
Kam Air	Kabul
KLM	Amsterdam
Korean Air	Seoul–Incheon
Kuwait Airways	Kuwait City
LOT Polish Airlines	Warsaw–Chopin
Lufthansa	Frankfurt, Munich
Mahan Air	Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Malaysia Airlines	Kuala Lumpur–International
Myanmar Airways International	Yangon
Nepal Airlines	Kathmandu
Oman Air	Muscat
Qantas	Seasonal: Melbourne
Qatar Airways	Doha
Royal Jordanian	Amman–Queen Alia (begins 17 September 2026)
SalamAir	Muscat
Saudia	Jeddah, Riyadh
Singapore Airlines	Singapore
Somon Air	Dushanbe
SpiceJet	Ahmedabad, Bagdogra, Bengaluru, Darbhanga, Dharamshala, Gorakhpur, Guwahati, Jammu, Kolkata, Leh, Mumbai–Shivaji, Patna, Pune, Shillong Srinagar, Varanasi
SriLankan Airlines	Colombo–Bandaranaike
Swiss International Air Lines	Zürich
TezJet	Bishkek
Thai AirAsia X	Bangkok–Don Mueang
Thai Airways International	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Thai Lion Air	Bangkok–Don Mueang
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul
Turkmenistan Airlines	Aşgabat
United Airlines	Newark
Uzbekistan Airways	Namangan (begins 3 April 2026), Tashkent
VietJet Air	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam Airlines	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
Virgin Atlantic	London–Heathrow

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
AeroLogic	Leipzig/Halle
Air Central	Zhengzhou
Astral Aviation	Sharjah
Atlas Air	Hong Kong
Blue Dart Aviation	Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata
Cathay Cargo	Hong Kong
China Airlines Cargo	Luxembourg,
Emirates SkyCargo	Brussels Airport,
FedEx Express	Al Maktoum International Airport, Guangzhou
Hong Kong Air Cargo	Hong Kong
IndiGo CarGo	Bengaluru, Mumbai–Shivaji,
Korean Air Cargo	Seoul–Incheon,
Qatar Cargo	Doha
SF Airlines	Chengdu–Shuangliu, Ezhou, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai
Sichuan Airlines Cargo	Chengdu–Shuangliu
SpiceXpress	Leh
Tianjin Air Cargo	Guiyang
UPS Airlines	Cologne/Bonn, Dubai–International, Shenzhen, Taipei

Error creating thumbnail: File with dimensions greater than 12.5 MP

Red for passenger destinations, blue for cargo-only destinations. As of March 2026.

Statistics

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Connectivity

IGI complex has four passenger terminals, one cargo terminal and a commercial Aerocity. These are the Terminal 1 in the northeast corner for the domestic flights, Aerocity commercial hub in the southeast corner, co-located in Terminal 2 (for domestic budget airlines) and Terminal 3 (international flights) in the southwest corner, cargo terminal between Terminal 3 and Aerocity.

Delhi Aerocity metro station is the main interconnectivity hub for the IGI on Airport Express (operational) and Golden Line (expected completion by March 2026), with the existing NH48 and existing Dwarka Expressway next to it. Also adjacent to it are the proposed Aerocity ISBT (west of the Aerocity metro station), underground Delhi Aerocity RRTS on Delhi–Alwar Regional Rapid Transit System (expected completion by December 2024, east of the Aerocity metro station), proposed at-grade Automatic People Mover (APM) light rail for moving passengers between various terminals within the restricted area, and under-construction Aerocity Passenger Transport Centre (PTC) (east of the Aerocity metro station) for connectivity via autorickshaw, ride hailing bikes and cars, etc. The upgraded Bijwasan railway station (expected completion by December 2024) is adjacent to the Dwarka Sector 21 metro interchange station on Orange and Blue Line, and Bijwasan railway station will connect to the Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor (expected completion by March 2025) via the Patli railway station in the south.

Air train

In September 2024, DIAL issued tenders for an elevated cum at-grade Automated People Mover (APM) system to be completed by the end of 2027. The 7.7 km line will have four stops — T2/3, T1, Aerocity and cargo city. This line will be the first APM at an Indian airport and is proposed to be implemented on a design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) model.

Metro rail

Delhi Metro Airport Express Train

IGI complex has three metro stations. Terminal 1 in the northeast corner of IGI Complex is served by the Terminal 1-IGI Airport metro station on the Magenta Line of Delhi Metro.

Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 are co-located in the southwest. Both are served by the same IGI Airport metro station on the Orange Line (Airport Express Line), which runs from New Delhi metro station (connects to Yellow Line and New Delhi Railway Station) to Dwarka Sector 21 metro station (connects to Blue Line, Bijwasan railway station, and the Dwarka ISBT Bus Terminal) and IICC - Dwarka Sector 25 metro station (India International Convention and Expo Centre, will be further extended to Gurgaon), with trains running every 10 minutes. Dwarka Sector 21 metro station, west of IGI, is the metro interchange of Orange and Blue Line. Kirti Nagar to Bamnoli Metrolite, proposed light metro, will interchange at IICC - Dwarka Sector 25 metro station for connectivity to the airport. Bamnoli will also be connected further south to Rapid Metro Gurgaon (at Rezang La Chowk in Palam Vihar) via the existing IICC - Dwarka Sector 25 metro station (India International Convention and Expo Centre). East of IGI, the line connects to the Yellow Line and New Delhi Railway Station at New Delhi Station. The line also links the Pink Line at Dhaula Kuan (Walkover Bridge between Dhaula Kuan and Durgabai Deshmukh South Campus Station).

Delhi Aerocity metro station in southeast corner of IGI, between Terminal 1 and Terminals 2 and 3 metro stations, is the metro interchange of Orange and Magenta lines. Metro Phase-IV is extending the Magenta Line further east from Aerocity Metro to Tuglakabad, via Vasant Kunj and Mehrauli Archaeological Park, with expected completion by 2026.

Railways

Bijwasan railway station, immediately to the west of IGI on the Delhi–Jaipur line, is being upgraded to a major world-class regional multimodal transport hub. Construction for ₹270.83 crore project started in 2022 and is scheduled to be completed in 2024.

Hisar International Airport-IGI Airport line (HIAIGI Line) will directly connect IGI with Hisar Airport. In the first phase, the missing Garhi Harsaru-Farukhnagar–Jhajjar rail link will be constructed. In the second phase, a short Hisar Airport rail line spur from the Jakhal–Hisar line to Hisar Airport will be constructed.

Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor (HORC) connects to the Delhi–Jaipur line at Patli railway station few kilometres south of Bijwasan. HORC will also provide direct rail connectivity to the Noida Airport via the Palwal-Jewar rail spur.

Another smaller station near IGI on the Delhi–Jaipur line is the Palam railway station, located north of Bijwasan station and northeast of IGI, 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) and 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from Terminals 1 and 3 respectively. Several suburban passenger trains run regularly between these stations.

Roads and expressways

Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway

The airport, which lies in south Delhi near the border with Haryana state, is connected to Delhi in the north and Gurgaon in Haryana in the south by two expressways, both of which have eight lanes: the older and busier 27.7 km long at-grade Delhi–Gurgaon Expressway NH 48 (part of Delhi-Jaipur National Highway) which runs through Gurgaon, and the newer 26.7 km long elevated Dwarka Expressway NH-248BB, which passes west of Gurgaon. The Dwarka Expressway originates immediately east of IGI airport at Shiv Murti and terminates in Haryana near Kherki Daula Toll Plaza, south of Gurgaon, near the Western Peripheral Expressway (WPE).

WPE in turn connects, listed from west to east, IGI to Delhi–Ambala–Amritsar NH 1, Delhi–Amritsar–Katra Expressway, NH9 Delhi-Hisar (Hisar Airport 150 km west of IGI), Delhi–Jaipur NH-48, Gurgaon–Sohna Elevated Expressway, Delhi–Mumbai Expressway, Faridabad–Noida–Ghaziabad Expressway (FNG), Palwal-Jewar Airport Expressway, Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE), etc.

Urban Extension Road-II, a 75.7 km-long six-lane expressway, connects the IGI airport to the south, southwest and western suburbs of Delhi as well as to the Delhi-Hisar NH-9.

Buses

As of 2024, two Inter-State Bus Terminals (ISBT) for long-distance buses are being constructed for the IGI.

• Aerocity Inter State Bus Terminus (Aerocity ISBT), adjacent to the Aerocity Metro Interchange Station near Terminal 1 of IGI, proposed in 2023, with IGI complex.
• Dwarka Dwarka Inter State Bus Terminus (Dwarka ISBT), adjacent and west of "Dwarka Sector 21 metro station", construction started on 27 acres in 2022, will cater to buses from Haryana and Punjab. It is also close to Bijwasan railway station. It is 11 km west of IGI T3.
• Gurgaon Inter State Bus Terminus, announced in 2023 over 15 acres of Sihi village near Kherki Daula toll plaz where Dwarka Expressway meets Delhi-Jaipur Highway NH48. Will cater to the buses from Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. It is 28 km south of IGI.

Local transport

Air conditioned low-floor buses operated by Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) regularly run between the airport and the city.

Metered taxis are also available from Terminals 1 and 3 to all areas of Delhi.

Alternate airports nearby

Under the National Capital Region Transport Plan, the following international airports are being developed as an alternate to IGI:

• Hisar International Airport, 190 km west of IGI. In April 2023, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar approved the Hisar International Airport-IGI Airport line (HIAIGI Line) rail link between IGI and Hisar airport via Bijwasan-Gurgaon-Garhi Harsaru-Sultanpur-Farukhnagar-Jhajjar, Rohtak-Hansi-Hisar.
• Noida International Airport, 100 km southeast.

Awards

In 2010, IGIA was conferred the fourth best airport award in the world in the 1.5–2.5 crore (15–25 million) category, and Most Improved Airport in the Indo-Pacific Region by Airports Council International. The airport was rated as the Best Airport in the world in the 2.5–4 crore (25–40 million) passengers category in 2015, by Airports Council International. It was awarded The Best Airport in Central Asia and Best Airport Staff in Central Asia at the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2015. It also stood first in the new rankings for 2015 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards conducted by Airports Council International.

The airport, along with Mumbai Airport, was adjudged as the "World's Best Airport" at the Airport Service Quality Awards 2017, in the highest category of airports handling more than 4 crore (40 million) passengers annually. The airport was awarded the "best airport" in Asia-Pacific in 2020 (over 4 crore (40 million) passengers per annum) by the Airports Council International. In 2023, the airport was awarded as the Cleanest Airport in the Asia-Pacific Region and also stood first again in the rankings for 2022 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards in the category of over 4 crore (40 million) passengers per annum, conducted by Airports Council International.

Future expansion

The newer domestic arrivals and departures terminals 1C and 1D, respectively, have been connected and expanded into a singular domestic terminal which are now known as simply, Terminal 1, capable of handling up to 40 million annual passengers.

Terminals 4, 5, and 6 will be built at a later stages which will be triggered by growth in passenger traffic. Once completed, all international flights will move to these three new terminals. Terminal 3 will then be solely used for handling domestic air traffic. A new cargo handling building is also planned. According to Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), these new terminals will increase the airport's annual passenger volume capacity to 10 crore (100 million).

DIAL submitted a plan in 2016 to the then aviation secretary R N Choubey regarding the expansion of the airport with a new fourth runway and Terminal 4 in a phased manner. The Master Plan of Airport in 2016 was then reviewed and updated by DIAL in consultation with the Airports Authority of India. According to the plan, the terminal construction should have started after the fourth runway was completed and Terminal 1 was expanded. However, the conversion and expansion of Terminal 2 into a fully-international terminal has been put on halt and postponed.

Accidents and incidents

• 1970: The pilot of a Royal Nepal Airlines Fokker F27-200 (9N-AAR) lost control due to severe thunderstorms and downdrafts, crashing just short of the runway. The plane was landing after a flight from Kathmandu, Nepal. Of the five crew and 18 passengers, one crew member was killed.
• 1972: Japan Air Lines Flight 471 crashed outside of Palam Airport, killing 82 of 87 occupants; ten of eleven crew members and 72 of 76 passengers died, and three people on the ground.
• 1973: Indian Airlines Flight 440 crashed while on approach to Palam Airport, killing 48 of the 65 passengers and crew on board.
• 1990: An Air India Boeing 747 flying on the London-Delhi-Mumbai route and carrying 215 people (195 passengers and 20 crew) touched down at Indira Gandhi International Airport after a flight from London Heathrow Airport. On application of reverse thrust, a failure of the no. 1 engine pylon to wing attachment caused this engine to tilt nose down. Hot exhaust gases caused a fire on the left-wing. There were no casualties but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair and written off.
• 1993: An Uzbekistan Airlines Tupolev Tu-154 that had been leased by Indian Airlines due to an ongoing pilot strike flipped over and caught fire while landing in bad weather. There were no fatalities, but the aircraft was destroyed by a post-crash fire.
• 1994: A Sahara Airlines Boeing 737-2R4C (registered VT-SIA) crashed while performing a training flight killing all four people on board and one person on the ground. Wreckage struck an Aeroflot Ilyushin-86 (registered RA-86119) parked nearby, killing four people inside.
• 1995: Indian Airlines Flight 492 (IC 492), a Boeing 737-2A8 (Registered VT-ECS), was damaged beyond repair when the aircraft overshot the runway at Delhi Airport due to pilot error, on its scheduled flight from Jaipur to Delhi.
• On 12 November 1996, the airport was involved in the Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision when a Saudia Boeing 747-100B, climbing out after take-off, collided with an incoming Kazakhstan Airlines Ilyushin Il-76 chartered by a fashion company, causing the deaths of all 349 people on board the two planes.
• On 24 December 1999, Indian Airlines Flight 814 bound for Delhi was hijacked by Pakistan-based terrorist outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed. The plane was taken to Pakistan, Afghanistan and the UAE. After the turn of the millennium, the plane was allowed to go back to Delhi. One passenger was killed.
• On 28 June 2024, a portion of the roof of Terminal 1 collapsed on parked vehicles amid heavy rains in the early morning. One person was killed and eight were injured.

See also

• Transport in India
• List of airports in India
• List of busiest airports in India
• Aviation in India

References

Bibliography

• Jefford, C.G. (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Lake, A (1999). Flying units of the RAF. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-84037-086-6.

External links

• Indira Gandhi International Airport Archived 5 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine, official website
• GMR Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) Archived 5 January 2023 at the Wayback Machine
• Accident history for DEL at Aviation Safety Network