The Indira Gandhi International Airport is expected to attain a passenger handling capacity of over 100 million per year with the addition of the almost-ready Terminal 1, which is expected to be inaugurated soon.
At present, the three terminals of the airport handle nearly 70 million passengers per year. Terminal 1, under phase 3A of the expansion plan, is set to double its capacity from 20 million to 40 million passenger handling capacity per year.
“The terminal’s construction, interiors, and artwork have all been completed. It is awaiting official inauguration, after which regulatory clearances will be sought,” sources said.
It is expected that budget carriers IndiGo, SpiceJet, and Akasa will shift their domestic operations to T1.
At present, T1 and T2 are dedicated for the domestic operations of low-cost carriers (LCCs).
The T1 will feature several passenger-friendly facilities, such as an automated tray retrieval system (ATRS), an individual carrier system (ICS), common usage self-service (CUSS), and self-baggage drop (SBD) kiosks, among others.
It will also have 22 aerobridges and 13 bussing gates.
The current expansion phase of the airport involves investments worth Rs 12,000 crore. It was launched in 2019 to enable IGIA to handle 100 million passengers a year.