Navi Mumbai Airport Set For Inauguration On Sept 30

The Navi Mumbai Airport is set to be inaugurated on Sept. 30, the City and Industrial Development Corporation confirmed on Friday, while noting that operations are expected to commence by November.

Cidco Managing Director Vijay Singhal described the airport as the country's "biggest", adding that it can be compared with London's Heathrow.

In a first, the airport at Navi Mumbai will also be connected to a water jetty to take passengers to Gateway of India or other locations via water route, the MD said, according to a post on the official social media handle of the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority.

Designed to serve as an alternative to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, the new airport will be located in Ulwe, near Panvel and will take up 1,160 hectares.

It is near the Mumbai–Pune Expressway, the Goa highway, and the JNPT port complex.

Phase 1 of NMIA introduces Terminal 1, a facility built to handle 20 million passengers annually, covering both domestic and international services. The larger masterplan envisions up to four terminals by 2032, capable of collectively handling 90 million passengers per year.

But NMIA is more than a passenger hub. It is being developed as a cargo powerhouse, debuting with capacity for 800,000 tonnes annually, with scalability for future volumes.

Airlines are expected to respond positively. Domestic carriers such as IndiGo and Akasa Air are among those who have committed to the establishment of operations