Bhopal’s Raja Bhoj Airport Witnesses 3.8% Higher Passenger Footfall In October Despite Drop In Aircraft Movement; Hyderabad Gets Larger Plane

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Bhopal’s Raja Bhoj Airport handled 1,36,687 passengers in October 2026, registering a 3.8% increase over the 1,31,683 passengers recorded in the corresponding month last year. Passenger traffic increased by 5,004 despite a marginal decline in aircraft movements, indicating higher passenger occupancy per flight.

According to airport official, the growth was largely driven by incoming passengers. The Bhopal airport recorded 70,970 arrivals in October, compared with 66,791 in October 2025, an increase of 4,179 passengers. Departures increased from 64,892 to 65,717, registering a rise of 825 passengers.

4 fewer aircraft movements

Despite higher passenger traffic, aircraft movements declined from 1,086 in October 2025 to 1,082 this year. The airport recorded 542 aircraft arrivals and 540 departures, compared with 543 each in the corresponding month last year.

The average passenger count per aircraft movement also increased from approximately 121 to 126, suggesting better utilisation of available flight capacity.

Winter schedule adds Delhi flight

The new winter flight schedule, effective from October 25, 2026, will remain in operation until March 27, 2027. One of the key changes is an additional daily Air India flight to Delhi, departing Bhopal at 10.15 pm. This takes the number of daily flights between the two cities from six to seven.

Hyderabad gets larger Aircraft

Airport officials said that, IndiGo has replaced its 72-seat ATR aircraft on the Hyderabad route with a 186-seat Airbus A320, adding 114 seats per flight. The daily service departs Bhopal at 5.25 pm.

Extra Wednesday flight to Raipur

The winter schedule also introduces an additional Wednesday flight to Raipur, departing at noon. The existing daily service departing at 5.45 pm will continue, providing passengers with an additional travel option.