Indigo Airlines has announced plans to commence flights from Surat to Kolkata, Indore, and Udaipur, stepping into the route previously managed by Spice. This move aims to further improve the connectivity from Surat, and the flights are set to start in July.

Specifically, flights from Surat to Udaipur and Ujjain will begin on July 1st, followed by the Surat-Kolkata flights launching on July 3rd. IndiGo will be deploying a 180-seater Airbus for the Kolkata flights, while the Udaipur and Ujjain flights will initially feature a 72-seater ATR class aircraft. The airline has stated that a larger aircraft could be used if ticket bookings indicate robust demand.

Despite a slight dip in passenger numbers from March to April 2023 - from 112,833 in March to 111,344 in April - overall passenger traffic through Surat airport has been on a steady rise since the start of the year. The only international flight from Sharjah to Surat accounted for 3,628 passengers in April.

Data reveals a steady growth in passenger numbers throughout 2023, with 99,655 passengers in January, 94,013 in February, and an upsurge to over 112,000 in March. In April, the airport accommodated 107,716 domestic and 3,628 international passengers.

The most popular routes included Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Chennai, and Jaipur. Indigo's introduction of new flights is expected to further enhance Surat airport's traffic, building on the steady growth seen over the past four months.