IATA AGM returns to Delhi after four decades, as IndiGo Airlines agrees to host the 81st AGM in 2025. Meanwhile, IndiGO CEO Pieter Elbers has taken charge as Chair of IATA Board of Governors.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced that IndiGo will host the 81st IATA Annual General Meeting (AGM) and World Air Transport Summit in Delhi in 2025, marking a return to the Indian capital after over four decades.

According to a press statement issued by IATA, the decision to host the 81st IATA AGM in India was made at the 80th IATA AGM in Dubai. This will be the third time the IATA AGM has convened in Delhi, having previously visited India in 1958 and 1983, it adds. The 81st AGM will be held from June 8-10, 2025.

“We look forward to gathering the aviation industry in Delhi, India’s gateway city, for the 81st IATA AGM in 2025. It has been over four decades since the industry came together for an IATA AGM in Delhi. With record aircraft orders, impressive growth, and world-class infrastructure developments, India is firmly on the trajectory to become the world’s third largest aviation market within this decade. With such bright prospects, it’s the perfect time for the IATA AGM to return to India and witness these exciting developments first hand,” says Willie Walsh, Director General, IATA.

“IndiGo is proud to be host airline for the 81st IATA AGM and looks forward to welcoming the global aviation community to Delhi in 2025. India, becoming the third largest economy within the next few years and leading the fourth industrial revolution with the use of AI, is a nation on the move. India’s rise in the global aviation landscape over the last years has been nothing short of remarkable,” says Pieter Elbers, CEO, IndiGo.

“IndiGo has been giving wings to the nation since 2006 and increasingly also expands internationally. Building on aviation as a force for good and India’s unique diversity, we are looking forward to engaging in meaningful dialogues aimed at sculpting the global aviation landscape around important topics such as safety, diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as sustainability, while efficiently delivering the growing global demand for air travel,” Elbers adds.

Meanwhile, Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, has assumed his duties as Chair of the IATA Board of Governors (BoG). His one-year term began at the conclusion of the 80th IATA Annual General Meeting in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on June 3.

Elbers is the 82nd Chair of the IATA BoG. He served earlier on the BoG between 2016 and 2022 as KLM’s President and CEO and was reappointed to the Board in 2022 shortly after he became IndiGo’s CEO. He succeeds RwandAir CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo who will continue to serve on the BoG.

“It is indeed an honour to assume this role at a time when India is emerging as one of the world’s largest and fastest growing civil aviation markets and evolving into a formidable force in the airline industry. Adhering to IATA’s legacy of aviation as a force for good, we will continue in our focus of highlighting the benefits of aviation in building connections, augmenting trade, tourism and mobility—benefits also so visible in India. At the same time, it is imperative that we persist in our commitment towards a more diverse, equitable and inclusive and also more sustainable aviation industry, creating positive change for generations to come. IATA plays a pivotal role in establishing global standards; I am eager to continue collaborating with global industry leaders, regulators, and stakeholders towards our collective goals,” says Elbers.

According to IATA, Elbers has over 30 years of broad experience in the aviation industry. He has been CEO of IndiGo since September 2022 and has taken IndiGo on a journey of expansion and internationalisation since.

“I look forward to working with Pieter as we deliver the industry’s sustainability commitments, address supply chain challenges, and strengthen the global standards critical for our industry’s efficient connectivity. I also want to thank Yvonne for her strong support and leadership over the past year. She has helped us to firmly establish Focus Africa as a key initiative to expand aviation’s social and economic benefits on the continent. And, as our first female BoG Chair, Yvonne has been an inspiration for the 25by2025 initiative to improve aviation’s gender balance,” says Walsh.

Meanwhile, IATA has announced that Luis Gallego Martin, Chief Executive Officer, IAG (representing IBERIA), will take over as Chair of the BoG from June 2025, following Elbers’ term.