• India’s airport expansion is shifting from reactive to proactive planning, exemplified by Navi Mumbai International Airport. The project integrates passenger capacity with cargo zones, bonded logistics parks, and direct industrial connectivity to support high-value, time-sensitive freight.
• Air cargo, though smaller in volume than passenger traffic, carries a disproportionately high export value. Major hubs like Delhi and Mumbai handle most cargo, exposing vulnerabilities, while new developments aim to improve redundancy, customs efficiency, and reliability for exporters.
• Regional and tier-two airports are increasingly integrated into national cargo networks. Investments in express cargo zones, night-landing capabilities, and modular sheds enable faster domestic line-haul, support e-commerce growth, and shift airport infrastructure toward speed and flexibility, backed by coherent government policy.

India’s airport expansion is entering a phase that marks a clear departure from past cycles of reactive capacity building. For the first time in decades, infrastructure development is not merely responding to traffic growth but actively anticipating it. This shift is particularly visible in the Mumbai region, where the long-delayed Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMI) is approaching operational readiness. More than a relief valve for one of Asia’s most congested aviation markets, the project has become a test case for how India is redesigning airports around air cargo, logistics efficiency and decentralised economic growth. 

Historically, India’s aviation story has been dominated by passenger expansion that consistently outpaced infrastructure. That imbalance is now reversing. Passenger traffic crossed 375 million journeys in 2024, while air cargo volumes exceeded 3.3 million tonnes, according to official data. Government policy targets envisage total air cargo throughput approaching 10 million tonnes by the end of the decade. Delivering that scale is no longer about adding terminals and runways alone; it requires airports to function as integrated logistics platforms, embedded within manufacturing, trade and distribution ecosystems.

Navi Mumbai illustrates this change in planning philosophy. Designed as a greenfield development with multimodal connectivity at its core, the airport incorporates dedicated cargo zones, bonded logistics parks and direct road and rail access to industrial clusters across Maharashtra and Gujarat. With an ultimate passenger capacity projected at more than 60 million annually, the airport’s cargo blueprint has been deliberately structured around high-value and time-sensitive freight, reflecting the growing economic importance of air logistics rather than treating cargo as a secondary activity.

Cargo moves from the margins to the centre 

India’s air cargo market remains modest in absolute volume compared with passenger traffic, but its strategic weight is disproportionately large. Air freight accounts for less than one per cent of India’s export volume, yet more than a third of export value. Pharmaceuticals, electronics, automotive components, perishables and express shipments increasingly define India’s trade profile, and these sectors are acutely sensitive to speed, reliability and compliance. 

At present, Delhi and Mumbai together handle over 60% of the country’s air cargo. This concentration has repeatedly exposed vulnerabilities during demand spikes, whether driven by pharmaceutical exports, festive e-commerce surges or supply chain disruptions. Navi Mumbai’s development therefore represents more than capacity augmentation; it is an exercise in risk mitigation. A parallel cargo gateway on the western seaboard is expected to reduce dwell times, improve redundancy and enable more predictable customs clearance for exporters operating on tight delivery windows.

This cargo-centric approach is not confined to the state of Maharashtra. Across India, airport operators are upgrading cargo terminals, expanding cold-chain infrastructure and creating dedicated express facilities. Hyderabad has strengthened its pharmaceutical handling capabilities, Bengaluru continues to scale perishables and electronics exports, while Chennai has invested heavily in automotive logistics. These investments are shaped as much by global shipper expectations as by domestic policy ambition.

Tier two and tier three airports enter the logistics equation 

Perhaps the most consequential structural change is unfolding beyond the major metros. Tier two and tier three airports are increasingly being repositioned as feeders within national and international cargo networks, particularly to support e-commerce and regional manufacturing. 

Airports in cities such as Guwahati, Indore, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli and Bhubaneswar have seen targeted investments in apron expansion, night-landing capabilities and modular cargo sheds. These facilities are evolving into consolidation points for last-mile cargo, aggregating shipments from surrounding districts before feeding larger hubs or international gateways.

The driver is India’s e-commerce trajectory. Online retail volumes are forecast to grow at double-digit rates over the next five years, with non-metro markets accounting for the bulk of incremental demand. Faster delivery expectations are forcing logistics providers to rely more heavily on-air networks, not only for international express but for domestic line-haul movements that connect interior production centres with urban consumption markets.

Infrastructure has begun to follow demand. Several regional airports are now being equipped with express cargo zones designed for high-frequency, low-weight shipments rather than traditional bulk freight. While less visible than major hub expansions, this shift represents a fundamental reallocation of airport capacity toward speed and flexibility.

Policy alignment accelerates execution 

India’s airport expansion has been underpinned by an unusual degree of policy coherence. The National Civil Aviation Policy and the National Logistics Policy (NLP) converge on a shared objective: reducing logistics costs from an estimated 13–14 per cent of gross domestic product toward global benchmarks. 

Institutions such as the Airports Authority of India continue to play a pivotal role, particularly in modernising regional airports. At the same time, private operators have introduced capital discipline and faster execution at major hubs, compressing development timelines that once stretched across decades.

The five-year outlook: capacity ahead of demand 

Over the next five years, India is expected to add more than 200 million passengers of airport capacity, alongside significant incremental cargo handling capability. While passenger growth remains robust, cargo demand is forecast to expand faster, driven by pharmaceuticals, electronics assembly, express logistics and cross-border e-commerce. 

India’s airport expansion is no longer just a story of concrete, terminals and runways. It represents a recalibration of how infrastructure underpins trade, logistics and last-mile delivery in one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets. If execution keeps pace with ambition, the next decade could see airport capacity evolve from a persistent constraint into a genuine catalyst for India’s air cargo growth.