Airports and air cargo in international trade

Detail

1. Why air transport has a special place in trade

Air transport is the fastest way to move goods. It covers long distances in very little time.

• It suits high-value goods, where a small load is worth a lot of money (for example gems and jewellery, or electronics).
• It suits perishable goods, which spoil quickly (for example cut flowers, fruit and some medicines).
• It is costly, so it only pays for goods whose value or freshness can cover the high freight charge.
• It cannot carry heavy or bulky goods such as iron ore, coal or crude oil. These go by sea.

Result: air carries a small share of India's trade by volume, but a larger share by value.

• Volume means the weight or quantity of goods. Value means how much money the goods are worth.
• Bulk cargo goes through the ports. Light, costly or perishable cargo goes through the airports.

Feature	Air transport	Sea transport
Speed	Fastest	Slow
Cost per tonne	Very high	Lowest
Typical goods	High-value, light, perishable	Heavy, bulky, low-value per tonne
Share of trade by volume	Small	Most
Share of trade by value	Larger than its volume share	Large
Gateways	International airports in metro cities	Major and non-major ports on the coast

2. Size of air cargo today

• Indian airports handled 33.7 lakh tonnes of air cargo in FY24 (2023-24), 7% more than the year before [2].
• In the same year, international air passengers grew 22% to 7 crore, and total air passengers grew 15% to 37.6 crore (FY24) [2].

• Passenger planes also carry cargo in their lower deck (the belly-hold). So more international flights also means more space for export cargo.

• India is the third-largest domestic aviation market in the world (FY24) [2].

3. The 25 major airports (2016-17)

In 2016-17, India had 25 major airports. Their states are given below, so they can be marked on a map.

Region	Airports (State/UT)
North	Delhi (NCT), Srinagar (J&K), Chandigarh (UT), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
East and North-East	Kolkata (West Bengal), Patna (Bihar), Bhubaneswar (Odisha), Guwahati (Assam)
West	Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur (Maharashtra), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Goa
Central	Indore (Madhya Pradesh)
South	Chennai, Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu); Bengaluru, Mangaluru (Karnataka); Hyderabad (Telangana); Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh); Thiruvananthapuram, Cochin, Calicut, Kannur (Kerala)

• Kerala has the most airports on this list (4). Maharashtra comes next with 3.
• The list leans towards the south and west, along the coasts. These areas have large migrant flows to West Asia, big export industries and heavy tourist traffic.
• Srinagar is a regional example. In FY 2024-25 it handled about 44.7 lakh passengers, 28,500 aircraft movements and about 10,000 tonnes of cargo. The Union Cabinet has approved its expansion [3].
• The total number of operational airports in India grew from 74 in 2014 to 165 by 15 July 2026 [4].

4. UDAN: taking flights to small towns

UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik, "let the common citizen of the country fly") is the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS). It was planned under the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016 of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and its first flights began in 2017 [5].

• Aim: make flying cheap for ordinary people, and use airports that had no flights or very few.
• Unserved airport: an airport with no scheduled flights. Underserved airport: an airport with very few flights.
• Heliport: a landing place for helicopters. Water aerodrome: a place on water where seaplanes take off and land.

How UDAN grew:

Date	Routes running	Airports and aerodromes working	Of these: heliports / water aerodromes
2023	479	74 [6] (NCERT: 73)	9 / 2
June 2025	625	88 [7]	13 / 2
2026	649	93 [4]	15 / 2

• Modified UDAN (July 2026) plans 200 modern helipads in priority regions where connectivity is still poor. It aims to reach 120 new destinations and serve 4 crore passengers over the next 10 years [4].
• Link to trade: small airports feed cargo to the big international hubs. This is the hub-and-spoke model: small "spoke" airports send goods to a large "hub", and long-distance flights leave from the hub.

5. Krishi UDAN: air cargo for farm produce

Krishi UDAN uses air cargo to move farm produce, especially perishable fruit and vegetables, from remote areas to big markets.

• It covers 58 airports (December 2023) [8]:
• 25 priority airports, mainly in the North-East, hilly and tribal regions;

• 33 other airports across the country.

• Krishi UDAN 2.0 was launched in October 2021 [9]. It gives a 50% subsidy on domestic air freight. It also gives 50% off Terminal, Storage and Processing (TSP) charges at airports. This applies to 41 eligible fruits and vegetables flown from 12 North-Eastern and Himalayan States/UTs [9].

• Why the hills and North-East? Roads there are long and slow and are often cut by landslides. Fresh produce rots on the way. Air transport saves it.

6. Where the air routes meet (map work)

Most air routes meet at four metro cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. Bengaluru and Hyderabad have now joined them.

Hub	Location	Why routes meet here
Delhi	NCT, northern plains	National capital; serves the whole Ganga plain and north-west India; links to Europe, West Asia and North America
Mumbai	Maharashtra, west coast	Financial capital; serves the western industrial belt (Maharashtra–Gujarat); links to West Asia, Europe and Africa
Kolkata	West Bengal, east	Gateway to eastern and north-eastern India; links to South-East and East Asia
Chennai	Tamil Nadu, east coast	Southern industry (cars, electronics); links to South-East Asia and the Far East
Bengaluru	Karnataka, Deccan plateau	IT and electronics hub; growing export cargo
Hyderabad	Telangana, Deccan plateau	Pharmaceuticals and IT hub

Why routes meet at metros:

• Metros have a big hinterland. A hinterland is the area of land that sends goods to, and gets goods from, a port or airport.
• A big hinterland means high demand for both passengers and cargo.
• High demand supports many international links, so airlines fly from there. More flights then pull in still more cargo.

7. What India sends by air

Main goods flown out of India (present day):

• Pharmaceuticals (medicines and vaccines). They are high in value and some need temperature control. Hyderabad is a key source.
• Electronics, especially smartphones made in the Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and Bengaluru (Karnataka) regions.
• Gems and jewellery, mainly through Mumbai. They are very small and very costly.
• Perishables: cut flowers (for example from Bengaluru's floriculture belt) and fruit.

Main air cargo hubs: Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad.

8. How air trade changed over time

• Colonial period: trade was based on sea and moved raw materials from India to Britain. Air transport played almost no part in trade.
• After 1991 liberalisation: India's trade opened up and its exports moved towards services, electronics, pharmaceuticals and gems. These goods suit air transport, so the metro airports became trade gateways.
• Present day: cargo is rising (33.7 lakh tonnes in FY24) [2]. The airport network is growing (165 airports by 2026) [4]. Schemes such as UDAN and Krishi UDAN [8][9] are spreading air access beyond the metros.

Prelims Hooks

• Air transport carries a small share of trade by volume but a larger share by value. It is unsuitable for bulky goods such as ore, coal and crude oil.
• Kerala had 4 of the 25 major airports of 2016-17 (Thiruvananthapuram, Cochin, Calicut, Kannur), the most of any state.
• Airport–state traps: Mangaluru → Karnataka, Visakhapatnam → Andhra Pradesh, Coimbatore → Tamil Nadu, Indore → Madhya Pradesh, Nagpur → Maharashtra.
• UDAN = Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik. It grew out of NCAP 2016 and started in 2017 [5].
• UDAN in 2023: 74 airports, including 9 heliports and 2 water aerodromes, with 479 routes [6]. By 2026: 93 aerodromes, including 15 heliports and 2 water aerodromes, with 649 routes [4].
• Krishi UDAN 2.0 gives a 50% freight subsidy for 41 fruits and vegetables flown from 12 North-Eastern and Himalayan States/UTs [9]. It covers 58 airports [8].
• Air cargo at Indian airports: 33.7 lakh tonnes in FY24 [2].
• India's operational airports: 74 (2014) → 165 (July 2026) [4].
• Original four route-meeting points: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai. Newer hubs: Bengaluru, Hyderabad.

Mains Points

• Distribution pattern: air traffic is concentrated in metro hubs because they have large hinterlands, industry and international links. Inland, hilly and North-Eastern regions are left with poor access, which deepens regional imbalance. UDAN and the hub-and-spoke model try to correct this [4][7]. (GS-I/GS-III)
• Export competitiveness: India's high-value exports (pharmaceuticals, smartphones, gems and jewellery) and perishables depend on fast, temperature-controlled air cargo. More cargo terminals and cold chains at hub airports directly help India's trade growth (33.7 lakh tonnes in FY24) [2]. (GS-III, infrastructure)
• Farm incomes and the North-East: Krishi UDAN 2.0 subsidises air freight and terminal charges for perishables from hilly and North-Eastern states [8][9]. This cuts wastage, links remote farmers to metro and export markets, and supports doubling farm incomes. (GS-III)
• Limits: air freight is costly, smaller UDAN routes depend on subsidy, and small aircraft carry little cargo. Air can only add to sea and rail for bulk trade, never replace them. (GS-III)