AIRPORT ADVANCEMENT

Indian airports are placing a greater emphasis on digitalisation and enhancing their eco-friendly credentials, updates

- ATUL CHANDRA.

India’s world class airports are today leading the way when it comes to airport digitalisation and eco-friendly initiatives. This is a dramatic shift from the decades past and has been aided by booming domestic and international air travel. Indian airports operated by private entities also continue to invest heavily in improving the passenger experience with biometric boarding systems, Common Usage Self Service (CUSS) and Self Baggage Drop (SBD) kiosks. The new Biometric Boarding Systems have simplified check-in, security, and boarding processes, providing a seamless and paperless experience. This shift towards digitalisation of airport services is aiding higher passenger throughput what are increasingly turning into regional air travel hubs.

India is a key driver for civil aviation in the Asia-pacific region, which is home to some of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world. By 2035, the region is expected to account for over 40 per cent of global air traffic, with nearly 3.5 billion passengers travelling annually, and airports will play a key role in the growth of air travel in India. The number of operational airports in the country has doubled from 74 in 2014 to 157 in 2024, with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) aiming to increase this number to 350-400 by 2047. The growing eco-friendly credentials of Indian airports is also in evidence with airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru having achieved Level 4+ as well as higher Airports International Council (ACI) Accreditation and are Carbon neutral.

Delhi Airport in Growth Mode