Indian Airlines' International Traffic Market Share Drops To 37%, Lose 9% In Q2 2026; April Traffic Falls By 40%
Indian airlines’ share of international passenger traffic fell to 37.3% in Q2 2026 from 46.2% a year earlier, with passenger volumes declining over 26%. Total international traffic fell 8.99% year-on-year, while foreign carriers recorded growth amid operational challenges and airspace restrictions affecting Indian airlines.
Indian carriers recorded a sharp decline in international passenger traffic during April-June 2026, while foreign airlines increased their share of the market | AI Generated Representational Image
Mumbai, August 25, 2026: The market share of Indian airlines in international air traffic dropped as low as 37% as the cumulative traffic fell nearly 9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026. The highest hit was suffered in the month of April alone when Indian carriers carried almost 40% fewer passengers than last year.
International Traffic Declines
India's international air passenger traffic suffered a sharp contraction in the second quarter of 2026 – from April to June – as the total international passengers flying in and out of the country dropped to 1.72 crore, down from 1.89 crore recorded during the corresponding period in 2025, recording a decline of 8.99%.
The traffic also went further down from the first quarter of this year, which was recorded at 1.91 crore, according to the latest air traffic data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
The majority of India's international air traffic is carried by 81 international carriers serving different cities of the country. In the second quarter of 2026, the foreign airlines carried 1.07 crore passengers against 1.01 crore in the same time period last year, recording an almost 6% increase.
However, Indian airlines carried only 64.14 lakh passengers against 87.34 lakh in the second quarter of 2025, signalling a downfall of over 26%. The overall market share of Indian airlines in international traffic, which stood at 46.2% in the second quarter of 2025, has plummeted to as low as 37.3% in the latest quarter.
April Sees Sharpest Fall
Upon bifurcation of the quarter, the Indian airlines suffered the biggest blow in April with only 18.24 lakh passengers, down from 30.07 lakh passengers carried in the same month in 2025 – reporting a decline by almost 40%. Largely, Indian airlines showed an upward trend from April to June with 18.24 lakh, 22.58 lakhs and 23.31 lakhs passengers carried, respectively.
Airspace Restrictions Hit Carriers
Industry analysts attribute the disproportionate impact on Indian carriers to ongoing operational constraints, particularly the airspace restrictions. Apart from the restriction imposed on global carriers due to the geopolitical conflicts in West Asia from late February, the closure of Pakistani airspace for Indian carriers since Operation Sindoor has added to the misery.
The flights from North Indian cities to the West have to take a much longer detour due to the restriction, which has resulted in longer flight timing, increased fuel consumption, increased airfare but decreased profits.
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UAE Leads International Traffic
According to the DGCA data, the highest number of international traffic was recorded to and from the United Arab Emirates. In between April and June, 22.99 lakh passengers travelled from the UAE to India and 22.61 lakh travelled outwards. The busiest city pair continued to be the Dubai-Mumbai route, catering to over 4.89 lakh people travelling between both the hubs.
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