Hyderabad: The airports in India are undergoing a major transformation as passenger demand is on the rise. Some Tier II and Tier III cities are set to get swanky new airports in the next five years while some metros like Delhi, Mumbai are set to get twin airports to deal with rising passenger traffic. However, some airports are also planning major expansion to meet the growing demand. One such airport is Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA). Hyderabad airport recorded 3 crore passengers in the year 2024 alone and the number is expected to go up to 4.5 crore in 2030.

Looking at this huge growth over the year, the expanded airport terminal and an additional runway is the need of the hour for RGIA. On this backdrop, SGK Kishore, Executive Director (South) and Chief Innovation Officer of GMR Airports said: “Once the second terminal is grounded, 4.5 crore passenger traffic would be reached by 2030 but the ultimate Airport target is 10 crore passengers.”

“Currently, there is a 43 flight movement per hour at Hyderabad International Airport, it will reach 55 flight movement per hour in the next 3 to 4 years,” SGK Kishore added.

RGIA was built in 2008 with a capacity to handle 12 million passengers, but over the years the airport has steadily increased its capacity to handle 34 million annually with a single integrated terminal. This is mostly due to the evolution of Hyderabad as a business hub and transit destination.

Meanwhile GMR is anticipating the growth in passenger traffic to cross 10 crore mark by 2030. Naturally the airport management needs to be prepared in advance and thus the need for additional runway and terminal took shape.