--- iata: IXU name: Aurangabad Airport city: Aurangabad country: India lastUpdated: '2026-09-09' officialWebsite: 'https://www.aai.aero/en/airports/aurangabad' sources: - 'https://www.aai.aero/en/airports/aurangabad' - 'https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurangabad_Airport' - 'https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_busiest_airports_in_India' - >- https://web.archive.org/web/20260425035010/https://www.aai.aero/sites/default/files/traffic-news/Mar2k26Annex3.pdf - >- https://web.archive.org/web/20260428091121/https://www.aai.aero/sites/default/files/traffic-news/Mar2k26Annex2.pdf - >- https://web.archive.org/web/20260424120057/https://www.aai.aero/sites/default/files/traffic-news/Mar2k26Annex4.pdf - >- https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/aurangabad/chhatrapati-sambhajinagar-airport-sees-10-dip-in-flyers-cargo-traffic-jumps-49-in-fy26/articleshow/133188101.cms - >- https://www.lokmattimes.com/aurangabad/628-lakh-air-passengers-in-a-year-yet-new-flight-services-remain-on-hold/ - >- https://www.lokmattimes.com/aurangabad/chhatrapati-sambhajinagar-airport-on-hold-demand-for-chhatrapati-sambhaji-maharaj-airport/ - 'https://www.prioritypass.com/lounges/india' - >- https://www.cntraveller.in/story/digi-yatra-guide-airports-registration-benefits-international-travel/ - >- https://www.fortuneindia.com/business-news/air-india-express-to-launch-twice-daily-delhiaurangabad-flights-from-sept-1-expands-domestic-network/152475 quickFacts: - >- Aurangabad Airport (IATA IXU / ICAO VAAU), still widely called Chikalthana Airport and often marketed under Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city branding, is the main AAI civil passenger gateway for the Marathwada region and the Ajanta / Ellora UNESCO circuit. On AAI FY 2025–26 annex traffic it handled about 0.63 million passengers and ranked among Maharashtra’s busier non-metro fields (local press placed it fourth statewide behind the Mumbai-area / Pune / Nagpur cluster). The campus sits at Chikalthana about 5.5 km east of the city centre and about 11 km from Aurangabad Railway Station along the Aurangabad–Nagpur state highway (Wikipedia / airline directories). Owner/operator is the Airports Authority of India (AAI). Official passenger page pattern: https://www.aai.aero/en/airports/aurangabad. Screenshot IXU (VAAU) ≠ BOM / NMI Mumbai ≠ PNQ Pune ≠ NAG Nagpur ≠ SAG Shirdi ≠ JLR Jabalpur — the wrong Maharashtra IATA is a multi-hour road or extra flight day, not an airside hop. This is a pure AAI public civil field (not a passenger enclave on an active naval or air-force base). - >- One integrated passenger terminal (inaugurated 21 November 2008 by then CM Vilasrao Deshmukh and Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel; public facility summaries ~190,000 sq ft / ~17,650–20,500 m² class footprint depending whether technical block is counted; two aerobridges; central AC / escalators / lifts / in-line baggage on period upgrade coverage) handles all scheduled passenger flows. Treat runway-extension / parallel-taxiway / “international starting soon” blogs and rename CGI as planning context — not a second live passenger campus. A December 2025 central rename order toward “Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Airport” was later reported on hold by AAI amid the competing “Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Airport” state proposal — boarding passes and AAI still commonly say Aurangabad / IXU. - >- Traffic (AAI annexes for FY 2025–26 / 1 Apr 2025–31 Mar 2026, as compiled on Wikipedia from archived Mar2k26 Annex II–IV PDFs and confirmed in the PDF text): 628,152 passengers (−10.3%), 5,360 aircraft movements (−20.6%), and 1,362.6 t cargo (+48.9%). Prefer AAI annex PDFs when auditing. Airport director S. B. Yewale’s mid-2026 briefings tied the passenger/movement dip to private-airline suspensions on Hyderabad and Goa — trust annex digits for audits and the ticket / FIDS for today’s bank. International passenger columns in the same annexes print zero for Aurangabad; customs-airport status is not proof of durable daily foreign nonstops. - >- Airfield (Wikipedia technical summaries for VAAU): single runway 09/27 — 2,835 m × concrete/asphalt; aerodrome elevation about 582 m / 1,917 ft. Do not invent a second passenger runway from land-acquisition / 3,660 m extension blogs. DigiYatra is not confirmed live here — mid-2026 public DigiYatra airport lists for Maharashtra cite BOM / NMI / PNQ / NAG without IXU. Plan CISF document queues as the safe default. - >- Lounges (live Priority Pass India directory, checked Sep 2026): Aurangabad / Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar / IXU is not listed as an airport heading with a soft-lounge pin. Live PP soft directory = none — do not invent Plaza Premium / Primus / Travel Club / Airr / Encalm soft pins from aggregator mirrors. Any AAI CIP / invite room is a separate paid or invite product, not a Priority Pass entitlement. - >- Ground: prepaid taxi / signed app cabs remain Plan A for the short Chikalthana run into Kranti Chowk / CIDCO / Railway Station (often ~15–30 minutes in normal traffic; confirm the board / app quote). There is no passenger rail or metro platform inside the terminal. Late nights default to prepaid / app cabs. BOM / NMI / PNQ / NAG remain the usual diversion / alternate hubs when weather or schedule shocks constrain the single strip — those are separate airports, not airside hops. bentoTips: - label: Timing title: Compact 2008 hall — still budget one strip and thin banks detail: >- IXU’s November 2008 integrated terminal is easy to read, but the field remains a single-runway AAI station with IndiGo-heavy domestic banks, thinner Air India / Air India Express metal, and FY26 route suspensions that already cut passengers ~10%. DigiYatra is not on mid-2026 Maharashtra live lists (BOM / NMI / PNQ / NAG) — keep CISF document queues as Plan A. Domestic ~2 hours early is the sane default. There is no live Priority Pass soft lounge to absorb a long wait. summary: >- Short city hop and a compact hall help; one runway and thin banks still need real buffers. category: timing - label: Terminal title: One 2008 integrated hall — no live PP soft pin detail: >- Screenshot IXU ≠ BOM ≠ NMI ≠ PNQ ≠ NAG ≠ SAG before the car leaves Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar / Ajanta–Ellora road. All scheduled passengers clear the 21 Nov 2008 integrated terminal (~190,000 sq ft; two aerobridges on public summaries). Runway-extension / rename CGI and “international soon” press are not today’s check-in map. Live Priority Pass soft directory = none. summary: Single 2008 passenger hall; zero live PP soft lounges. category: terminal - label: Food title: Landside sealed water is Plan A — no PP soft-lounge drinks detail: >- Live Priority Pass product is empty for IXU on the national India index. Without a soft-lounge entitlement, buy sealed water and snacks landside before CISF; airside café markup is the usual Indian-airport tax. Ignore Plaza Premium / Primus inventions — live PP directory = none. summary: No live PP soft room; landside bottles still beat airside pricing. category: food - label: Access title: 'Prepaid taxi Plan A — Chikalthana is ~5.5 km, no terminal metro' detail: >- Use official prepaid taxi counters in arrivals or signed Ola / Uber pickup for the Chikalthana run into Kranti Chowk / CIDCO / Prozone / Aurangabad Railway Station (often ~15–30 minutes in normal traffic; confirm the board / app quote). The railway station is a separate road transfer (~11 km). Do not invent an in-terminal metro or rail platform from city transit planning coverage. Ajanta / Ellora day trips need a separate road plan and full-day buffers — they are not “next to the terminal.” summary: Short road hop into the city; metro is not at the kerb. category: status lounges: [] waterOptions: - kind: purchase name: Landside sealed water (check-in / departures hall) zone: landside price: >- Typical Indian-airport sealed-bottle markup — confirm shelf tag (often roughly ₹40–80) summary: >- Best default hydration play — buy sealed water landside before CISF so you are not hostage to airside café pricing after a Chikalthana road transfer. location: >- Convenience and café kiosks in the integrated terminal departures / check-in hall before security terminal: Integrated Terminal landside isBestValue: true - kind: purchase name: Airside retail water zone: airside price: Higher than landside — confirm shelf tag summary: >- Markup backup once you are through security; fine for a top-up, poor as Plan A. location: Post-security café and retail units toward domestic gates terminal: Integrated Terminal airside airportistScore: 6.1 slug: ixu region: Asia-Pacific --- > Markdown for [/airports/ixu](/airports/ixu). Append `.md` to any page URL (or send `Accept: text/markdown`) for an agent-readable copy. - [HTML page](/airports/ixu) - [Lounge directory](/airports/ixu/lounges.md) - [Sitemap](/sitemap.md) # Aurangabad Airport (IXU) Aurangabad, India · Asia-Pacific Compact AAI civil gateway at Chikalthana for Marathwada and the Ajanta/Ellora circuit — short city hop, single 2008 hall, IndiGo-shaped banks, and no live Priority Pass soft lounge. ## Airportist Score **6.1 / 10** Weighted sum of the six published categories (no holistic fudge). - Ease of use (25%): 7.4 — Wayfinding, security wait, and layout. - Comfort & amenities (20%): 6.0 — Seating, Wi-Fi, cleanliness, and quiet. - Food & retail (15%): 5.4 — Food and retail quality and variety. - Ground access (15%): 7.8 — Transit, taxi, and parking to the city. - Reliability (15%): 5.6 — Delays, cancellations, and weather resilience. - Lounges (10%): 2.0 — Worth-it density and access quality. ## At a glance - Passengers: 0.63M - Terminals: 1 - Typical security: 25 min - On-time: 78% - Disruption: normal ## Best for - Ajanta / Ellora visitors who want the closest scheduled commercial field - Marathwada business travelers connecting via Mumbai / Delhi / Hyderabad / Bengaluru - Travelers who prefer a single compact hall over a multi-terminal maze ## Watch out for - No live Priority Pass soft lounge — ignore aggregator Primus / Plaza inventions - DigiYatra not on mid-2026 Maharashtra live lists (BOM / NMI / PNQ / NAG) - FY26 passenger dip and HYD / Goa suspension risk — trust ticket/FIDS - Customs-airport label ≠ durable daily international nonstops - Airport rename politics — boarding passes still commonly say Aurangabad / IXU ## More intel - [Lounge directory](/airports/ixu/lounges.md) (free) - [Getting there](/airports/ixu/getting-there.md) (free) - [Amenities](/airports/ixu/amenities.md) - [Traveler tips](/airports/ixu/tips.md) - [Water](/airports/ixu/water.md) - [Full guide](/airports/ixu/guide.md) - [Disruptions](/airports/ixu/disruptions.md) - [Reviews](/airports/ixu/reviews.md)