Delhi airport achieved a significant milestone by climbing 11 places to 28th position in 2026 from 39th in 2025 in OAG's global megahub rankings, according to reports from Business Standard. The GMR Group-run airport saw one of the sharpest rises in the world's top 50 international airport megahubs list, moving up from its previous position. The rankings are calculated based on the ratio of scheduled international connections at the airport to the number of destinations served by the airport, including online and interline connections as well as low-cost connections.
Delhi's rise came at the expense of several major international hubs, with Dubai falling from 15th to 31st position due to the West Asian war and reduction in flights, as reported by Business Standard. Other airports that were pushed behind Delhi in the most connected international airports list included Jakarta, Manila, Taipei, Fukuoka in Japan, San Francisco, Doha and Riyadh's King Khalid airport in Saudi Arabia. Delhi airport currently connects to over 67 international destinations and declared that its throughput of international transfer passengers had hit 29% at Delhi airport from 22% two years ago.
Delhi airport also entered the top 10 in OAG's list of the 25 top low-cost megahubs in the world, moving to ninth rank for the first time in 2026 from 11th in 2025, according to Business Standard. Mumbai airport took the spot left by Delhi at 11th in 2026, compared to 14th in 2025. In both categories, IndiGo maintained its dominance, accounting for 40% of the share of all international flights at Delhi airport and 57% of the LCC capacity at Delhi, while holding 60% of the LCC capacity at Mumbai airport.
The significant improvement came as the Ministry of Civil Aviation launched its hub-and-spoke international service from June 25, 2026, from the airport, which includes single check-ins, through baggage handling and fast transit, as reported by Business Standard. This government initiative has contributed to Delhi's enhanced connectivity and positioning as an international airport hub. Globally, Istanbul maintained its position as the top megahub with international connections to over 337 destinations, while Kuala Lumpur ranked fourth in Asia with connections to over 154 destinations.
