West Asia conflict, soaring airfares drag Mumbai airport traffic down 6.2% in March

The downturn coincided with escalating tensions involving the US, Israel and Iran, which disrupted air traffic across key Middle East corridors used heavily by Indian carriers. Mumbai airport — one of India’s busiest international gateways with strong connectivity to Gulf destinations such as the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia — saw around 1,035 flight cancellations between February 28 and March 11, 2026.

The impact was even more pronounced in aircraft movements. International aircraft movements at Mumbai airport plunged 16.9% year-on-year to 6,228 in March 2026, compared with 7,491 in the corresponding month last year.
Airlines were simultaneously grappling with a surge in aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, which significantly pushed up operating costs and airfares.

Earlier this month, Air India temporarily suspended some international services, citing elevated ATF prices and airspace restrictions. On March 10, the Tata Group-owned airline revised fuel surcharges on international tickets, increasing charges by $10 to $50 per passenger. IndiGo also introduced a fresh fuel surcharge to offset mounting fuel costs.

Global ATF prices nearly doubled within a month, rising to $195.19 per barrel on March 27 from $99.40 per barrel on February 28. While the Centre limited the impact on domestic carriers by allowing only a 25% increase in domestic jet fuel prices, airlines operating international routes continued to bear the full rise in fuel costs.

Air India later revised its surcharge structure again, with additional charges ranging from $24 for South Asian destinations to as high as $280 for Australia-bound flights.

In May, the Centre raised ATF prices for international flights by another 5%, although the Maharashtra government later reduced VAT on aviation fuel used for domestic flights to 7% from 18% until November.

The weakness in international traffic was not limited to Mumbai. Airports in Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Goa and Chennai also recorded declines in overseas passenger traffic during March compared with a year ago.

Despite the March slowdown, Mumbai airport’s annual international passenger traffic rose 4.6 % to 1.63 crore in FY26 from 1.55 crore in FY25.

As India’s financial capital and the country’s second-busiest international aviation hub, Mumbai remained particularly vulnerable to disruptions along the Middle East air corridor, underscoring the broader impact of geopolitical tensions and rising fuel costs on the aviation sector.