Indira Gandhi International Airport (Hindi: इंदिरा गांधी अंतरराष्ट्रीय हवाई अड्डा) is an airport located in Delhi, India. Named after former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, it is the busiest airport in India in terms of number of daily flights and the second-busiest in India in terms of passenger volume. The airport serves as the primary civilian aviation hub for the National Capital Region of India. The airport was previously operated by the Indian Air Force and was a part of the Palam Airport until its management was transferred to Airport Authority of India. In May 2008, the management of the airport was passed over to a joint venture, known as Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) and led by GMR Group, which will also have the responsibility for the airport's ongoing expansion and modernization.
In 2007, Indira Gandhi International Airport handled 23 million passengers annually and the planned expansion program will increase its capacity to handle 100 million passengers by 2030. The new Terminal 3 building, currently under construction and expected to cost US$1.94 billion, will handle an additional 37 million passengers annually before the start of the 2010 Commonwealth Games. In September 2008, the airport inaugurated a 4.43 kilometer-long runway, making it Asia's longest runway.
The airport, which was earlier known as Palam Airport, was built around the second world war and served as an Air Force Station for the Indian Air Force. Passenger operations were later shifted to the airport from Safdarjung Airport in 1962 due to an increase in traffic. Palam Airport had a peak capacity of around 1300 passengers per hour .
Owing to an increase in air traffic in the 70s, an additional terminal with nearly four times the area of the old Palam terminal was constructed. With the inauguration of a new international terminal (Terminal 2), shaped like a trapezoid on 2 May 1986, the airport was renamed as Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. The trapezoid terminal (international) has nine jet bridges.
The old Palam terminal is now known as Terminal 1 and handles all domestic flights. The terminal has been divided into three separate terminals - 1A (for domestic flights of state owned Indian Airlines and Kingfisher Airlines), 1B (for all other domestic airlines) and Domestic Arrival Terminal. There is also a separate Technical Area for the use of VVIP movements. Additionally there is a separate Hajj terminal for catering rush during Hajj.
Owing to the booming Indian Aviation industry and the entry of numerous low-cost private carriers, the airport saw a huge jump in passenger traffic and has failed to cope with the demand. The capacity of Terminal 1 is estimated to be 7.15 million passengers per annum (mppa). However, the actual throughput for 2005/06 was an estimated 10.4 million passengers. Including the international terminal (Terminal 2), the airport has a total capacity of 12.5 mppa whereas the total passenger traffic in 2006/07 was 16.5 million passengers per annum In 2007, there was a 6.5 million increase in the airport's passenger traffic, making the number of passengers 23 million that used the airport.
Delhi Airport has two parallel runways and a non-parallel runway: a new runway 11R/29L(14,534ft (4430m))with CAT IIIB ILS on both sides, the main runway 10/28 and an auxiliary runway 09/27 (). Runway 28 is one of the few runways in Asia and the only one in South Asia equipped with CAT III-B instrument landing system. 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 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 and a Jet Airways plane taking off at the same time.
As there is an Indian Air Force Base (Hindon) in the flight path of Delhi airport it is necessary for civilian aircraft to make a five-minute detour to avoid over-flying the military facility. In previous years the IAF used to close Delhi airport for use during annual celebrations to mark its "raising" day. As of 2006 such activities are conducted at Hindon Air Force Base to reduce disruption to civilian air traffic at Delhi airport.
Delhi Airport has been undergoing major upgrades since Fraport, Airports Authority of India, Eraman Malaysia, and GMR Infrastructure have been granted the contract to manage and build the airport over a 35 year period. Terminal 1A and 2 have been renovated with new washrooms, ceilings, departure areas and the latest security equipment.
The companies have also been constructing the brand new Terminal 3 at Indira Gandhi International Airport. This terminal will cater to both domestic and international passengers until the second phase of construction is completed, which will include an additional new terminal catering exclusively for international flights. Terminal 3 will be built in place of the older existing terminals.
Designed by HOK working in consultation with Mott MacDonald, the new Terminal 3 will be a two-tier building, with the bottom floor being the arrivals area, and the top being a departures area. This terminal will have over 160 check-in counters, 74 aerobridges, 30 parking bays, 72 immigration counters, 15 X-ray screening areas, for less waiting times, duty-free shops, and other features. Over 90% of passengers will use this terminal when completed. This new terminal is planned to be completed in time for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, which are to be held in Delhi, and will be connected to Delhi by an eight-lane motorway (National Highway 8), and the Delhi Mass Rapid Transit System. Terminal 3 will cater to more than 35 million passengers a year.
In September 2008, the airport inaugurated a 4.43 kilometer long runway, making it the longest operational runway in Asia. The runway will increase the airport's capacity to handle 70 flights from 34-40 flights per hour. As of September 2008, the runway was undergoing trials.
Terminal 3 would form the first phase of the airport expansion in which a U shaped building would be developed in a modular manner. In 2010, all international and full service domestic carriers will operate from Terminal 3, while Terminal 1 will be developed as an exclusive terminal for low cost carriers. In subsequent stages, the low cost carriers will also move to the new terminal complex.
Terminal 4 and 5 will be built at a later stage, and once completed, all international flights will move to these two new terminals, while Terminal 3 will then solely be 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 cost approximately US$7.5 billion dollars and will increase the airport's annual passenger volume capacity to 100 million.
| Airlines | Destinations | Frequency | Equipment| |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aeroflot | Moscow Shermetyevo | 7 x week | B767-300ER, Ilyushin Il-96-300 |
| Aerosvit | Kiev-Boryspil | 4 x Weekly | B767-300ER |
| Air Arabia | Sharjah | 7 x week | A320-200 |
| Air Astana | Almaty | 3 x Weekly | A320-200 |
| Air China | Beijing | 7 x week | B767-300ER |
| Air France | Paris-Charles de Gaulle | 7 x week | B747-400(W) / A340-300(S) |
| Air France Cargo | Paris-Charles De Gaulle | Not specified | B747-400F |
| Air India (International) | Abu Dhabi, Dammam, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Jeddah, London-Heathrow, New York-JFK, Osaka-Kansai, Shanghai-Pudong, Singapore, Tokyo-Narita | 7 x week | A310-300 / B747-400 / B777-200LR / B777-300 |
| Air India (Domestic) | Coimbatore, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Imphal, Indore, Jaipur, Jammu, Jodhpur, Khajuraho, Kolkata, Leh, Lucknow, Mumbai, |Nagpur, Patna, Pune, Raipur, Ranchi, Srinagar, Tirupati, Trivandrum, Udaipur, Vadodara, Varanasi | 7 x week | A300B4 / A319-100 / A320-200 |
| Air India Cargo | Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calicut, Chennai, Dammam, Cochin, Goa, Hyderabad, Frankfurt Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Trivandrum | Not specified | A310-300F / B737-200F Adv |
| Air India Express | Dubai, Jaipur, Lucknow, Mumbai | 7 x week | B737-800 |
| Air India Regional | Allahabad, Bhubaneswar, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kulu, Ranchi, Surat, Udaipur, Vishakhapatnam | 7 x week | Not Specified |
| Indian Airlines | Amritsar, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Dubai, Jaipur, Kabul, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Lahore, Lucknow, Muscat, Sharjah | 7 x week | A319-100 |
| Air Mauritius | Mauritius | 1 x Weekly | A330-200 |
| Alitalia Cargo | Milan-Malpensa | Not specified | MD-11F |
| American Airlines | Chicago-O'Hare | 7 x week | B777-200ER |
| Ariana Afghan Airlines | Kabul | 2 x Weekly | A310-200 |
| Asiana Airlines | Seoul-Incheon | 3 x Weekly | A330-300 |
| Atlant-Soyuz Airlines | Not specified | Charter Cargo Flights | Not specified |
| Austrian Airlines | Vienna | 7 x week | B767-300ER(S) / B777-200ER(W) |
| Biman Bangladesh | Dhaka | 3 x Weekly | DC-10 / A310-200 |
| Blue Dart Aviation | Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai. | 7 x week | B757-200 |
| British Airways | London-Heathrow | 14 x Weekly | B777-200(S) / B747-400(W) |
| British Airways World Cargo | Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Munich, London-Stansted, Shanghai-Pudong | Not specified | B747-400F |
| Cathay Pacific | Hong Kong | 14 x Weekly | A330-300/A340-300 |
| Cathay Pacific Cargo | Hong Kong, London-Heathrow | 2 x weekly | B747-400F |
| China Airlines | Taipei-Taiwan Taoyuan | 5 x Weekly | A330-300 |
| China Airlines Cargo | Amsterdam, Manchester, Taipei-Taiwan Taoyuan | Not specified | B747-400F |
| China Eastern Airlines | Beijing, Shanghai-Pudong | 5 x Weekly | A330-200 |
| China Southern Airlines | Guangzhou | 7 x Weekly | B757-200 |
| Continental Airlines | Newark | 7 x week | B777-200ER |
| Cosmic Air | Kathmandu | 14 x Weekly | Fokker 100 |
| DHL Air | Not specified | Various Charter Flights | A310-CARGO |
| Druk Air | Kathmandu, Paro | 5 x Weekly | A319-100 |
| Emirates Airline | Dubai | 18 x Weekly | A330-300 / B777-200 / B777-300ER |
| Emirates SkyCargo | Dubai | Not specified | B747-400F |
| Etihad Airways | Abu Dhabi | 7 x week | A320-200 / A330-300 / A340-300 / A340-600 |
| Etihad Airways Crystal Cargo | Abu Dhabi | Not specified | A300-600RF |
| Ethiopian Airlines | Addis Ababa, Beijing | 5 x Weekly | B767-300ER |
| Euro Cargo Air | Brno | Not specified | B747-400F |
| EVA Air Cargo | Brussels, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Taipei-Taiwan Taoyuan | Not specified | MD-11F |
| FedEx | Various Charter Destinations | Not specified | DC-10 |
| Finnair | Helsinki | 7 x week | MD-11 |
| GMG Airlines | Dhaka | 2 x Weekly | MD-82 |
| GoAir | Ahmedabad, Goa, Hyderabad, Jammu, Mumbai, Srinagar | 7 x week | A320-200 |
| Gulf Air | Bahrain | 7 x week | A320-200 / A340-300 |
| Iberia Airlines | Madrid [Begins January 2009] | Yet to specify | A340-300 |
| IndiGo Airlines | Agartala, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Imphal, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune, Vadodara | 7 x week | A320-200 |
| Jagson Airlines | Dharamshala, Kullu, Shimla | 7 x week | Dornier 228-200 |
| Japan Airlines | Tokyo-Narita | 7 x week | B747-400 |
| Jazeera Airways | Dubai, Kuwait | 7 x week | A320-200 |
| Jet Airways | Abu Dhabi, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Brussels, Dhaka, Dubai, Hong Kong [begins 26 October], Kathmandu, London-Heathrow, Singapore, Toronto-Pearson | 7 x week | B777-300 / A330-200 / B737-800 |
| Jet Airways | Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bagdogra, Bangalore, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jammu, Jodhpur, Kochi, Kolkata, Leh, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Patna, Pune, Raipur, Srinagar, Thiruvanathapuram, Udaipur, Vadodara, Varanasi | 7 x week | B737-700 / B737-800 / B737-900 / ATR-72-500 |
| Jet Cargo | Various Charter Destinations | Not specified | Not specified |
| JetLite | Kathmandu | 7 x week | B737-800 |
| JetLite | Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Coimbatore, Dibrugarh, Goa, Gorakhpur, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna, Port Blair, Pune, Ranchi, Srinagar, Visakhapatnam | 7 x week | B737-400/B737-800 |
| Jordan Aviation | Various Chartered Destinations | A310 | |
| Kam Air | Kabul | 3 x Weekly | B737-200 Adv |
| Kingfisher Airlines | Agra, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune, Srinagar, Udaipur, Varanasi | 7 x week | A319-100 / A320-200 / A321-200 / ATR-42 / ATR-72 |
| Kingfisher Red | Amritsar, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna, Ranchi | 7 x week | A320-200 / A321-200 / ATR-42-500 |
| KLM Royal Dutch Airlines | Amsterdam | 7 x week | MD-11 / B777-200ER |
| Korean Air Cargo | Seoul-Incheon | 2 x weekly | B747-400F |
| Kuwait Airways | Kuwait City | 7 x week | A300B4/A310-300 |
| Kuwait Airways Cargo | Kuwait City | Not specified | B747-400F |
| Kyrgyzstan Airlines | Bishkek | 3 x Weekly | Tu-154 |
| Lufthansa | Frankfurt, Munich | 14 x Weekly | B747-400 / A340-600 |
| Lufthansa Cargo | Frankfurt, Munich, Leipzig-Halle, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shanghai-Pudong | Not specified | MD-11F |
| Mahan Air | Tehran-Imam Khomeini | 4 x Weekly | A300B4 |
| Malaysia Airlines | Kuala Lumpur | 9 x Weekly | A330-300 |
| MDLR Airlines | Chandigarh, Dharamsala, Kolkata, Ranchi | 7 x week | Avro RJ70 |
| Nepal Airlines | Kathmandu | 7 x week | B757-200 |
| Oman Air | Muscat | 7 x week | B737-800 |
| Pakistan International Airlines | Karachi, Lahore | 6 x Weekly | B737-300 |
| Qatar Airways | Doha | 7 x week | A330-200 / A330-300 |
| Royal Jordanian | Amman | 7 x week | A310-300 |
| Saudi Arabian Airlines | Dammam, Riyadh, Madinah, Jeddah | 12 x Weekly | B777-200 |
| Saudi Arabian Airlines Cargo | Dammam, Riyadh, Jeddah | Not specified | A300B4 |
| Scandinavian Airlines | Copenhagen [Begins 27 October] | 3 x Weekly | A330-200 / A340-300 |
| Singapore Airlines | Singapore | 14 x Weekly | B777-200/B777-300ER |
| Singapore Airlines Cargo | Singapore | Not specified | B747-400F |
| SpiceJet | Ahmedabad, Bagdogra, Bangalore, Chennai, Coimbatore, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jammu, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Srinagar, Varanasi, Visakhapatnam | 7 x week | B737-800 |
| Sri Lankan Airlines | Colombo | 6 x Weekly | A320-200 |
| Swiss International Airlines | Zurich | 7 x week | A330-200 |
| Syrian Arab Airlines | Damascus, Sharjah | 2 x Weekly | A320-200 |
| Thai Airways International | Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi | 12 x Weekly | B747-400 / B777-300 |
| Turkish Airlines | Istanbul-Ataturk | 4 x Weekly | A310-300 |
| Turkmenistan Airlines | Ashgabat | 3 x Weekly | B737-800 |
| Uzbekistan Airways | Tashkent | 1 x Weekly | A310-300 / B767-300ER |
| Virgin Atlantic Airways | London-Heathrow | 7 x week | A340-600 |
| Xpressair | Kathmandhu | 5 x weekly | B737-400 |
(S)=Summer/Fall, (W)=Winter, Spring
Went out of business following September 11 attacks, ending flights in November 2001.