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Top 10 busiest flight routes globally in 2025: Know which Indian route made it to the list

World's Busiest Flight Routes for 2025: Notably, the Asian routes dominate the list of the world's busiest domestic and international flight routes in March 2025.

Busiest Flight Routes Globally 2025: Enlisted below are the top 10 busiest global flight routes—domestic and international, for March 2025. (Source: Canva)

World’s Busiest Flight Routes in 2025: The global aviation industry is on a consistent upward trend, as highlighted by a recent report from the Airports Council International (ACI) that anticipates substantial long-term growth in worldwide passenger traffic over the next three decades.

According to the report, global passenger numbers are projected to reach approximately 17.7 billion by 2043, rising to 22.3 billion by 2053—nearly 2.4 times the expected volume for 2024.

This substantial rise in global air travel demand is likely to result in the expansion and diversification of flight routes to meet the increasing needs.

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Notably, the Asia Pacific region dominates the list of the world’s busiest domestic airline routes, with only one route from the Middle East—specifically Jeddah (JED) to Riyadh (RUH)—making the list.

This route has also seen the largest capacity increase compared to last year, with 14% more seats added.

Furthermore, India’s busiest flight route—Mumbai-Delhi—has been ranked as the eighth busiest domestic route globally in 2025, retaining its last year’s rank.

READ | Top 10 busiest global airports in 2025: Indian airport featured—check its rank

For international airline routes, the Asia Pacific region again leads, accounting for nine of the busiest routes, and only one route connecting Africa to the Middle East, that is Cairo to Jeddah (CAI-JED).

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It has experienced a 5% increase in the number of available seats compared to the previous year.

A recent report from OAG details the busiest domestic and international air travel routes for March 2025; enlisted below are the top 10 busiest global flight routes—domestic and international, for March 2025.

Global Top 10: Busiest Domestic Flight Routes in March 2025

As of March 2025, the domestic route from Jeju (CJU) to Seoul (GMP) continues to hold the title of the busiest in the world, accommodating 1.1 million seats.

However, it witnessed a 12% reduction compared to March 2024, witnessing the most significant year-on-year decline in capacity among the top ten routes.

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Additionally, the route from Shanghai (SHA) to Shenzhen (SZX) has entered the top ten this year, claiming the tenth position with 640,923 seats, while the route from Guangzhou Baiyun (CAN) to Shanghai (SHA) has fallen out of the rankings.

Rank	Route	Route Name	Passengers	Country
1	CJU-GMP	Jeju International – Seoul Gimpo	1,051,750	South Korea
2	CTS-HND	Sapporo New Chitose – Tokyo Haneda	1,032,880	Japan
3	FUK-HND	Fukuoka – Tokyo Haneda	1,001,967	Japan
4	HAN-SGN	Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City	901,635	Vietnam
5	JED-RUH	Jeddah – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia	881,578	Saudi Arabia
6	MEL-SYD	Melbourne – Sydney, Australia	756,904	Australia
7	HND-OKA	Tokyo Haneda – Okinawa Naha	679,386	Japan
8	BOM-DEL	Mumbai – Delhi	664,698	India
9	PEK-SHA	Beijing – Shanghai Hongqiao	645,476	China
10	SHA-SZX	Shanghai Hongqiao – Shenzhen	640,923	China

Source: OAG

Global Top 10: Busiest International Flight Routes in March 2025

The route from Fukuoka (FUK) to Seoul Incheon (ICN) has ascended into the top 10 busiest international connections, exhibiting a significant 20% increase in seating capacity compared to the previous year, thus securing the tenth position.

In contrast, the routes from Bangkok (BKK) to Seoul Incheon (ICN) and New York (JFK) to London Heathrow (LHR) have fallen out of the rankings.

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Rank	Route	Route Name	Seats	Country
1	HKG-TPE	Hong Kong – Taipei	621,341	Hong Kong / Taiwan
2	CAI-JED	Cairo – Jeddah	549,807	Egypt / Saudi Arabia
3	KUL-SIN	Kuala Lumpur – Singapore Changi	472,926	Malaysia / Singapore
4	ICN-NRT	Seoul Incheon – Tokyo Narita	469,837	South Korea / Japan
5	ICN-KIX	Seoul Incheon – Osaka Kansai	428,027	South Korea / Japan
6	BKK-HKG	Bangkok – Hong Kong	376,273	Thailand / Hong Kong
7	CGK-SIN	Jakarta – Singapore Changi	368,927	Indonesia / Singapore
8	BKK-SIN	Bangkok – Singapore Changi	343,563	Thailand / Singapore
9	NRT-TPE	Tokyo Narita – Taipei	337,971	Japan / Taiwan
10	FUK-ICN	Fukuoka – Seoul Incheon	335,466	Japan / South Korea

Source: OAG

Methodology:

The busiest air routes are characterised by the highest number of scheduled airline seats available for the month, with the analysis considering flights operating in both directions on each route.

The data is obtained from the OAG Schedules Analyser during the initial week of each month, highlighting the most active domestic and international aviation routes.

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Cherry Gupta

Cherry Gupta is an Assistant Manager – Content at The Indian Express. She leads the Top 10 section, curating list-based features on key national and international developments, and manages daily news content. She also produces SEO-driven articles and collaborates with the Lifestyle team to conduct interviews with notable artists and write workplace culture features. ... Read More