Pune Airport Ranks 9th Nationally for Domestic Passenger Traffic, Lags in International Numbers

Pune, 25th April 2024: In the last financial year, Pune airport saw over 95 lakh passengers, with more than 93 lakh travelling domestically and 1.69 lakh travelling internationally. Pune ranks 9th nationally for domestic passenger traffic, but it doesn’t make it into the top 10 for international passengers.

According to recent statistics released by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) covering April 2023 to March 2024, domestic flights from Pune increased to 62,616, a 7.5% rise from the previous year’s 58,261. Domestic passenger numbers also surged to 93.55 lakhs, marking an 18.9% increase from the previous year’s 78.65 lakhs.

International flights from Pune totalled 1,423 last year, up 19.6% from the previous year’s 1,190. International passenger numbers also rose to 1.69 lakhs, a 19.9% increase from the previous year’s 1.41 lakhs. However, international passengers make up less than 2 % of Pune’s total air passengers. Pune also lags behind smaller cities in international passenger numbers.

Cargo traffic at Pune airport decreased to 37,841 tons from the previous year’s 39,369 tons, a 3.9% decrease. Domestic cargo stood at 37,833 tons, while international freight was a mere eight tons, down from 55 tons in the previous year.

The list of international travellers from April 2023 to March 2024 underscores Pune’s comparatively lower numbers, with only 1.69 lakh passengers. Several barriers hinder international travel to Pune, including the insufficient length of the runway, limited international flight options, and restrictions due to the airport’s air force status. Discussions about extending the runway have yet to yield concrete results, further complicating the matter. As a result, many travellers opt to travel via Mumbai due to Pune’s limited international flight options.

Here’s the ranking of international travellers from April 2023 to March 2024:

1. Delhi – 1 crore 94 lakh 70 thousand
2. Mumbai – 1 crore 43 lakh 18 thousand
3. Chennai – 58 lakh 79 thousand
4. Kochi – 49 lakh 20 thousand
5. Bangalore – 46 lakh 67 thousand
6. Hyderabad – 42 lakh 14 thousand
7. Kozhikode (Calicut) – 26 lakh 76 thousand
8. Kolkata – 24 lakh 68 thousand
9. Trivandrum – 20 lakh 50 thousand
10. Ahmedabad – 19 lakh 77 thousand
11. Pune – 1 lakh 69 thousand