Fleet strength of Indian civil aviation from 2011 to 2025

The fleet size of the Indian civil aviation industry has seen a massive jump of 131% over the past 14 years, more than doubling from 355 aircraft in 2011–12 to an estimated 820 aircraft in 2024–25. The first phase of this growth (2011-2019) was marked by steady and accelerating expansion, with the fleet strength increasing from 355 to 691 aircraft. A particularly aggressive jump was seen between 2016-17 and 2018-19, when the fleet capacity grew rapidly from 493 to 691 aircraft, signalling strong market confidence and surging demand for air travel. However, the second phase of this growth trajectory brought some interesting shifts due to the COVID-19 pandemic (2019-2022). Despite the massive impact of the global aviation crisis, India’s fleet size remained fairly stable, hovering around 669 in 2019-20 and slightly increasing to 691 by 2021-22. This resilience is quite remarkable and highlights the underlying demand in the Indian market, even during tough times. Now, in the third phase (2022-2025), the sector has been experiencing strong post-pandemic recovery and expansion. As per the latest data, the fleet size is estimated to reach a projected 820 in 2024-25 from 723 in 2022-23. This growth reflects renewed confidence among airlines, rising domestic air travel demand, and ambitious expansion strategies by Indian carriers. As India is moving forward to emerge as one of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world, this expansion is closely tied to the country’s overall economic growth, a booming middle class, and better air connectivity. The recent figures suggest that while growth is continuing, it’s becoming more stable, indicating that the market is entering a more mature phase. However, the trajectory remains upward, aligning well with India’s broader economic story and the government’s initiatives, like UDAN, aimed at boosting regional connectivity.