Jharsuguda: Passenger traffic at Veer Surendra Sai (VSS) Airport in Jharsuguda has declined in the first five months of the 2026-27 financial year, raising concerns over the consistency of air connectivity to western Odisha's key industrial hub.

The airport handled around 1.65 lakh passengers between April and August 2026, registering a 1.6% decline compared with the corresponding period last year. During August alone, passenger traffic stood at 24,347, down 17.5% from 29,497 in August 2025. The airport recorded 203 aircraft movements during the month, with each take-off or landing counted as one movement.

The decline comes after a strong performance in the previous financial year, when the airport handled 4.43 lakh passengers in 2025-26, according to the available airport traffic data. The latest figures suggest that the growth momentum may be facing a setback, although the reasons for the decline need to be established through route-wise and airline-wise data.

Passenger traffic at Jharsuguda airport has witnessed considerable fluctuations since 2019-20. The airport handled around 2.16 lakh passengers in 2019-20, before the Covid-19 pandemic affected air travel in the following year. Traffic recovered to approximately 2.63 lakh passengers in 2021-22 but slipped to around 2.33 lakh in 2022-23.

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Passenger numbers remained largely stagnant in 2023-24, at around 2.34 lakh, before rising to approximately 3.13 lakh in 2024-25. The airport registered a further increase in 2025-26, handling more than 4.42 lakh passengers, marking a significant improvement over the preceding years.

The latest decline in passenger traffic during April-August 2026, however, indicates that the airport's growth trajectory needs closer monitoring.

Aircraft movements have also fluctuated over the past several years. The airport recorded 4,092 movements in 2021-22, which fell to 3,643 in 2022-23 and 2,971 in 2023-24. The figure recovered marginally to 3,173 in 2024-25 before increasing to 4,566 in 2025-26.

During the first five months of the current financial year, the airport recorded 1,341 aircraft movements. A comparison with the corresponding period of the previous year, along with details of flight cancellations and route-wise operations, would help establish the extent of the decline.

Jharsuguda is a major industrial and commercial centre in western Odisha, with business travellers, industrial employees and residents relying on air connectivity for travel to other parts of the country. Any sustained reduction in flight frequency or passenger traffic could affect the convenience of air travel for the region.

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For a growing industrial region, consistent flight operations and reliable connectivity remain essential to support business travel and regional economic activity told ex Head of the Department of Economics Laxmi Aryan College Jharsuguda, Tapan Kumar Barik.

VSS Airport Director U N Dhaundia said that the department has been working on air services to the new destinations from Jharsuguda.