Port Blair's Veer Savarkar International Airport (IXZ) is the primary aerial gateway to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, connecting this remote Indian archipelago to the mainland. Flight options into IXZ are limited and operate primarily as essential trunk routes, with pricing heavily influenced by tourism seasons and government-regulated fare caps on certain connections.
Travelers flying into Port Blair will find direct arrivals focused on key Indian metro cities. The most common and consistent departure points are Chennai and Kolkata, with additional direct services often available from Delhi, Bengaluru, and Visakhapatnam, especially during peak tourist periods.
The market for arrivals into Port Blair is served by a handful of Indian carriers. Airlines like IndiGo, Air India, AirAsia India, and Vistara operate these routes into IXZ. While competition exists, the limited number of operators and the essential nature of the air link mean that deep discounting is less common than on highly competitive mainland domestic routes.
Finding the best fare to Port Blair requires booking months in advance, especially for travel during the high season (November to April). Prices surge dramatically during holiday periods like Christmas and New Year for arrivals into IXZ. Travelers should monitor for airline sales, consider flying on weekdays into Port Blair, and be aware that connecting via Chennai or Kolkata can sometimes offer cheaper, albeit longer, itineraries from other Indian cities to IXZ — flying into Chennai or Kolkata first on a budget carrier then taking a separate ticket to Port Blair can yield savings.