India’s air cargo volumes rise despite West Asia conflict

INDIA’S air cargo sector has registered resilient growth in the early months of the current fiscal year, overcoming severe flight-route bottlenecks and airport closures caused by the ongoing West Asia crisis. With key global transit hubs such as Dubai and Doha experiencing temporary operational pauses due to regional hostilities, international freight networks have rapidly restructured. India’s major airports have stepped in to handle the deflected volumes, resulting in an unexpected surge in cargo throughput. Chennai International Airport has taken the lead in this growth narrative among all major Tier-1 Indian hubs, recording a massive spike in both standard international freighters and ad-hoc cargo charters. This surge is heavily driven by accelerated export shipments of electronics, automotive components and garments, alongside an influx of time-sensitive transit cargo diverted from traditional Gulf corridors, according to a report.