India's Largest Airlines By Passengers Carried

India is home to many airlines, ranging from low-cost giants to regional startups. But which of these airlines carry the most passengers every year? Let's take a look.

5 IndiGo

Starting from the top-down, Indian budget airline giant IndiGo tops the list. The New Delhi-based airline flew 48.4 million passengers in 2021. Over 95% of these passengers were domestic last year due to travel restrictions, with only 2.4 million flying abroad during the last year. However, with travel booming in 2022, keep an eye on IndiGo's progress.

A320neo Indigo MSN8077 landing — Photo: Airbus

IndiGo has been crowned the sixth-largest airline in the world, per OAG, as of March 2022. The airline also has a massive pending order with Airbus, which includes up to 700 A320neo family planes, including the A321XLR.

4 Air India

Coming in second place is flag carrier Air India, which was the only long-haul airline from 2019 to 2020. Air India carried 10.99 million passengers in 2021. The airline took the lead for most international passengers flown, with 2.5 million travelers flying abroad with AI last year.

Wilson will begin his new role in mid-June. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Air India was sold to the Tata Group in January 2022, privatizing the airline and starting a new chapter in its history. If all goes well, we could see strong passenger growth through this year and far behind. Moreover, the airline is also considering placing a new widebody order for the first time in a decade.

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3 SpiceJet

Rounding off the podium places is low-cost carrier SpiceJet. SpiceJet carried 9.54 million passengers in 2021. The all-737 airline flew mostly domestic flyers (76%) but racked up an impressive 724,000 foreign travelers. Last year saw the airline make a major push towards the cargo sectors, seeing leases for new planes and the spin-off of SpiceXpress.

SpiceJet has struggled financially for the last two years but is hoping for better days with the pandemic receding. Photo: Getty Images

SpiceJet is currently the largest operator of the Boeing 737 family in India, and has orders for over 150 737 MAX over the coming decade and beyond.

2 Go First

Go First (rebranded from GoAir last year) takes the fourth spot for busiest airlines by traffic. Go First carried 7.96 million passengers in 2021. The airline is set to go public later this year after a string of delays, with hopes to raise ₹3,600 crores ($472 million).

After 17 years of flying as GoAir, a legal dispute saw the airline rebrand as Go First. Photo: Getty Images

1 Vistara

Wrapping up the list for today is full-service airline Vistara. Vistara carried 6.40 million passengers in 2021. The Tata-Singapore Airlines joint-venture airline also expanded its usage of the 787 Dreamliner to offer more flights to London, Paris, Frankfurt, and Tokyo. While only 287,650 international passengers flew with the airline last year, this number is set for a comfortable bump in the coming years.