Hub-and-spoke operations: Naidu reviews Delhi airport readiness and UDAN connectivity plans

Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Thursday met stakeholders to review Delhi airport’s preparedness for hub-and-spoke operations. The plan aimed to improve transfer services for passengers moving between domestic and international flights. Officials said the model was meant to route more transit traffic through Indian airports instead of foreign hubs.

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An official release said about 35 per cent of international passengers from India currently change planes at overseas hubs. These included Dubai, London and Singapore. The ministry said it was working to develop Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai as global hubs to reduce such dependence.

Delhi airport hub-and-spoke model and passenger transfers

Delhi airport, the country’s largest, can handle over 100 million passengers each year. The release said Delhi airport has started creating slot banks to speed up transfers. Under the model, flights from smaller cities were to be coordinated and grouped at hubs like Delhi for onward international connections.

At spoke airports, passengers were to receive two boarding passes. These were to be clearly marked with D for domestic and I for international. For outbound travellers, customs and immigration checks were to be completed at the first exit point, which would be the spoke airport.

For inbound travellers, customs and immigration were to be carried out at the final entry point. The release said this would again be the spoke airport. It also said baggage for both inbound and outbound international passengers would move through airside operations at the hub airport.

Hub-and-spoke model rules for flights and operations

The release said combination flights would not be allowed to keep operations clear. It said separate aircraft would be used for domestic and international legs. Officials said this approach would support regulatory certainty and help manage passenger movement during transfers at hub airports.

Hub-and-spoke model impact and India’s global hub plans

Naidu said the hub-and-spoke approach signalled a change from India being mainly an end-destination market. The release said the aim was to make India a global transit hub. This could allow Indian airports to retain transfer traffic that currently passes through foreign airports.

The release also linked the model to Tier II and III airports built under UDAN. It said the system would support smoother links between these airports and international destinations. Officials said the intention was to integrate regional routes with global networks through major hubs.

During the review at Delhi airport, Naidu said India’s position between the eastern and western hemispheres offered an advantage for transit growth. Naidu said, "The strategy has been developed after extensive deliberations,\" and thanked Home Minister Amit Shah for support in moving the proposal ahead.

By 2047, Naidu said the combined effect of the hub-and-spoke model was expected to create about 16 million direct and indirect jobs. Naidu also said it could add nearly USD 1.4 trillion to the Indian economy. The ministry’s work on multiple hubs remained central to this plan.

With inputs from PTI