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The Ministry of Civil Aviation launched Hub & Spoke international flight operations from Ahmedabad on 1 September 2026, making it the third spoke airport in the framework after Varanasi and Amritsar.
Under the model, check-in, immigration and customs are completed at the spoke airport and baggage is checked through to the final destination, so passengers do not repeat formalities at the Delhi hub.
Two services connect out of Ahmedabad - AI 1117 to 22 destinations across Europe, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and AI 1121, departing at 20:15 hours, to 17 destinations across North America, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Europe.
The framework is a component of the International Aviation Hub Strategy, which targets India as the preferred aviation hub for Indian travellers by 2030 and a leading global aviation hub by 2047.
Hub & Spoke connectivity is to be extended to 22 more airports in this phase, including Surat in Gujarat.
In a hub-and-spoke network, traffic from many smaller airports (spokes) is consolidated at one large airport (the hub) from which long-haul flights depart, instead of every city flying non-stop to every destination. India's version adds a regulatory element: the spoke is itself an international airport, so international check-in, immigration and customs are completed there and baggage is tagged through to the final destination. On arrival at Delhi the passenger proceeds directly to the onward international flight without repeating immigration or customs. Until now an Ahmedabad passenger bound for Paris, Toronto or Sydney flew domestically to Delhi, managed separate bookings, collected and re-checked baggage and re-entered immigration queues, with the risk of missing the connection.
Simple Analogy: It converts a domestic hop and an international flight, booked and handled separately, into one continuous journey - the paperwork is done once, at the start.
Position India as the preferred aviation hub for Indian travellers by 2030 and a leading global aviation hub by 2047, reducing dependence on overseas transit airports.
Key: The Hub & Spoke model is its key operational component; it leverages India's geographic position and airport infrastructure to retain transit traffic within Indian hubs and Indian carrier networks.
Make flying affordable and accessible from tier-2 and tier-3 cities by supporting airlines on thin routes.
Key: Launched on 21 October 2016 under the National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016, using Viability Gap Funding and fare caps. As on 28 February 2026, 663 routes across 95 airports, heliports and water aerodromes had been operationalised. The Cabinet has approved a Regional Connectivity Scheme - Modified UDAN for FY 2026-27 to FY 2035-36 with a total outlay of Rs 28,840 crore.
India's first integrated civil aviation policy, covering regional connectivity, route dispersal, safety, maintenance and bilateral traffic rights.
Key: It is the policy under which UDAN was created; the hub strategy pursues the same objective of routing more traffic through Indian airports and carriers.
Nodal ministry for civil aviation policy, air service agreements and airport development; it launched the Hub & Spoke framework.
Safety regulator for civil aviation - licensing, airworthiness, operations approvals and enforcement of air safety standards.
Regulator for civil aviation security, laying down security standards for airports, airlines and cargo in line with ICAO Annex 17. Its standards govern screening at a spoke airport before a through-checked international departure.
Statutory body that manages and develops airports and provides air navigation services across Indian airspace; constituted on 1 April 1995 by merging the National Airports Authority and the International Airports Authority of India.
The new spoke airport and Gujarat's principal airport, serving Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. International operations began on 26 January 1991; operation and management were transferred by AAI to Adani Airports in November 2020.
Assented to on 11 December 2024 and in force from 1 January 2025, it repealed and replaced the Aircraft Act, 1934. It governs the design, manufacture, maintenance, possession, use, operation, sale, export and import of aircraft in India.
The earlier framework. A 2020 amendment to the 1934 Act gave statutory recognition to the DGCA (safety), BCAS (security) and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (accident investigation) - the three authorities that continue under the 2024 Act.
The statute under which AAI was constituted on 1 April 1995 by merging the National Airports Authority with the International Airports Authority of India.
UDAN / Regional Connectivity Scheme launched under the National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016.
Hub & Spoke international operations launched from Varanasi - the first spoke airport.
Amritsar becomes the second spoke airport.
Ahmedabad becomes the third spoke airport; 22 more airports announced for this phase, including Surat.
Target: India as the preferred aviation hub for Indian travellers; projected 0.4 million jobs and USD 30 billion added to GDP.
Target: India as a leading global aviation hub; projected 16 million jobs and nearly USD 1.4 trillion contribution.
GS Paper 3 > Infrastructure > Airports and Investment Models
General Awareness > Current Affairs and Static GK
General Awareness > Infrastructure and Economy
General Awareness > Transport Infrastructure
Civil aviation infrastructure and UDAN recur regularly in SSC and Railway general awareness, and reach UPSC Prelims through the regulator and statute route.
An international airport at which an international journey begins, with check-in, immigration and customs completed there before transiting through the hub.
Baggage tagged at the origin to the final destination so that it is not collected and re-checked at the transit airport.
A bilateral treaty fixing the routes, capacity and designated carriers permitted between two countries - the entitlements that determine how many international seats a carrier may operate.
Government support bridging the gap between an operator's costs and revenue on a route that would otherwise be commercially unviable - the core mechanism of UDAN.