India is all set to see two new mega airports opening up this month – Noida International Airport (NIA) in Delhi NCR and Navi Mumbai International Airport in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). While the Navi Mumbai International Airport is set to be inaugurated on 8 October by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu recently announced that the much-delayed NIA will finally be inaugurated on October 30.
The airports are being developed to meet the growing demand for air travel and to ease congestion at the two existing airports in the country’s largest cities. Aviation regulator DGCA has already granted an aerodrome license to NMIA to commence operations. NIA, located in Jewar (Uttar Pradesh), is expected to receive the important license very soon as much of the infrastructure is already complete.
Airlines have also started tying up with the airports. Last month, Air India Group joined IndiGo and Akasa Air to launch operations from NMIA. For the Noida airport, IndiGo signed an MoU in November 2023 to serve as the launch carrier. Akasa Air has also committed to building a strong network from here.
Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani on Wednesday personally inspected the final preparations of the NMIA. In a social media post, Adani wrote, "Ahead of the inauguration of Navi Mumbai International Airport on 8 Oct, I met with our differently-abled colleagues, construction workers, women staff, engineers, artisans, fire fighters and the guards who helped bring this vision to life."
NMIA is a 74:26 joint venture between Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) and City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO). The airport is being built in five phases, with the launch phase expected to accommodate 20 million passengers per annum (MPPA) and handle 0.5 million metric tons (MMT) of cargo. Upon full completion, NMIA will have the capacity to serve 90 MPPA and handle 3.2 MMT of cargo annually.
Flight operations at Noida International Airport will begin within 45 days of inauguration. The first phase of the airport, with one runway and one terminal, will have the capacity to handle traffic of 12 million passengers annually. After the completion of the fourth phase, NIA will have the capacity to manage 70 million passengers per year. Built with an investment of over $2 billion, NIA is expected to support high demand for air traffic in the NCR region.
Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a 100% subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, is responsible for the development, construction and operation of the greenfield project. The project has faced repeated delays as it was originally targeted for a September 2024 opening and later revised to mid-2025.