New Delhi Airport: World's Second Busiest

DALLAS - New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) has been ranked as the second busiest airport globally for March 2022 in terms of seat capacity and frequency of domestic and international flights, by the Official Airline Guide (OAG).

The airport catered to 3,611,181 seats for the month, only second to Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson International Airport (ATL), which served 4,422,436 seats. India only reopened its borders last month, and in a short time, Delhi has witnessed a surge in flights.

Pulling out of the pandemic, the industry is showing positive signs but airfares remain to stay on the higher end - a given with the rising fuel prices.

Here are the remaining top 10 for March, in descending order:

Dubai International Airport (DXB): 3,554,527 seats
London Heathrow Airport (LHR): 3,510,941 seats
Dallas Dallas/Fort Worth Airport (DFW): 3,460,566 seats
Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD): 3,293,417 seats
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX): 3,226,369 seats
Denver International Airport (DEN): 3,179,730 seats
Tokyo - Haneda (HND): 3,114,035 seats
Guangzhou (CAN): 3,082,153 seats

Delhi Airport has also made the biggest leap from its 23rd position back in April 2019 to reaching the second spot in March 2022. DEN made a jump from the 21st spot to the 8th spot, while DFW made its way from 16th to 5th.

The recovery is rather volatile at this moment with some airports exploding with traffic while others are catching up and while some might not. LHR faces headwinds for the coming months and might see itself drop further spots.

DEL Terminal 3 | Image New Delhi Airport

Comments from Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO, Delhi Airport

“COVID-19 pandemic had hit the world hard. Travel restrictions had badly affected the travel and tourism sectors for two consecutive years,” said the CEO, adding that "now, with the rise in the number of vaccinated people across the world, governments are easing travel restrictions and slowly opening up their borders."

“India has last month opened its borders and allowed the entry of fully vaccinated international travelers into the country," said Jaipuriar.

The airport is home to Air India (AI), IndiGo (6E), and Vistara (UK) and serves as an important hub for the rest of the Indian airlines.

Featured image: Delhi Airport GMR