AIR passenger traffic at Nagpur’s Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport is experiencing a robust resurgence, positioning the city as a critical, high-growth aviation hub in Central India. With over 22 lakh passengers recorded between January to September 2026, traffic flow has increased significantly, driven by increased business, tourism, and developments in MIHAN. Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, Nagpur handled approximately 22,40,446 lakh domestic air passengers from January 2026 to September 2026. This is a rise of 151,291 air passengers as compared to 20,89,155 recorded in same period of the previous year January to September 2025. However, the international air passengers dropped to 50,881 from January 2026 to September 2026, as compared to 79,071 in the same period of 2025.

 

The drop in international passengers can be attributed to the temporary suspension of international flights by carriers like Air Arabia to Sharjah and Qatar Airways to Doha due to West Asia conflict that has impacted international traffic in early 2026. One of the leading travel agents, Raju Akolkat, Director of Destinations Travel and Vacations and Chairman of TAAI of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), Vidarbha Chapter said, “Growth in passenger traffic is mostly fuelled by passengers travelling to and from the state capital Mumbai, located over 700 km away and the national capital Delhi.” To further support this growth, Akolkat said a massive transformation plan is underway, with the GMR modernisation of Nagpur airport aimed at elevating air passenger capacity. “Nagpur known as the ‘Orange City’ and second capital of Maharashtra, its central location is attracting increased logistical and commercial traffic, fuelling the surge in air connectivity. The city’s aviation sector is poised for exponential growth as major passenger hub,” he added.