India set to surpass China in air passenger traffic growth rate in 2026: Airports International Council

New Delhi: India is projected to surpass neighbouring China in air passenger traffic growth rate in 2026, growing at 10.5 per cent, Airports International Council (ACI) said on Wednesday.

One of the world's fastest civil aviation markets, India's air passenger traffic growth rate is estimated at 10.1 per cent this year, lower than the 12 per cent pegged for China.

The neighbouring nation has a much larger aviation market compared to India.

At a briefing in the national capital, ACI Asia Pacific & Middle East Director General Stefano Baronci said India is a market that is developing and in the process of enhancing its infrastructure.

ACI Asia Pacific & Middle East represents over 600 airports in the region.

As per its projections, India's air passenger growth rate will be 10.5 per cent in 2026 and 10.3 per cent in 2027 while that of China will be 8.9 per cent and 7.2 per cent, respectively.

For 2023-27, the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for air passenger traffic in India is estimated at 9.5 per cent, higher than 8.8 per cent for China, as per ACI.

India will also be the fastest growing aviation market globally for the 2023-2053 period with a CAGR of 5.5 per cent, while that of China will be 3.8 per cent.

Reflecting the high growth prospects for the Indian aviation market, ACI said in 2043, the country's yearly trips per capita will be 0.4 compared to 0.1 in 2023.

The GDP per capita has been calculated on the basis of purchasing power parity in terms of dollars for 2019.

ACI Asia Pacific & Middle East President SGK Kishore said that in the next 5-10 years, big aviation hubs will be developed in India, which also has strong domestic opportunities.

Currently, India has 159 operational airports and 50 more airport development projects will be taken up in the next five years. Also, domestic airlines have over 1,700 planes on order.