PM Narendra Modi and Navi Mumbai International airport (ANI images)
NEW DELHI: Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) will finally get its long-awaited second airport — which will eventually overtake the existing Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Int’l Airport (CSMIA) in traffic handling capacity — this month. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) on Oct 8. Ahead of the inauguration, Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani visited the project site for a comprehensive review and walkthrough of the final preparations. “Every runway, every terminal, every gate here carries the imprint of thousands of hands and hearts. This is more than an airport — it is a monument to the spirit of Bharat, built by its people, for its people,” Gautam Adani said.During his visit, the Adani Group chairman undertook a detailed inspection of the airport, which, once fully operational, will have the capacity to handle 9 crore passengers annually — placing it among the largest and most advanced airports in the world. Apart from assessing technical progress and operational readiness, Adani interacted with construction workers to understand their journeys, met engineers and project teams, engaged with firefighting staff to acknowledge their critical role in safety, and spent time with differently-abled staff at one of the terminal’s retail outlets.Flights will start at NMIA a week to 15 days after getting inaugurated. Starting with 60 daily flights (30 arrivals and as many departures) in the first month, the number will double after 30 days and then reach the 240-300 mark in six months. In its first phase with a capacity of 2 crore passengers annually (CPA), the greenfield airport will handle 400 daily flights which it will ramp up to in a year, Adani Group director (airports) Jeet Adani had recently told TOI in an exclusive interaction.“We aim to have both domestic and international operations at NMIA from Day One itself. If that does not happen for some reason, both will start for sure within the same month (Oct). The ratio of domestic and international flights will be 4:1 as T1 domestic capacity is 1.7 CPA and int’l is 30 lakh per annum. We have the flexibility to increase international passengers, based on demand,” Jeet, son of group patriarch Gautam Adani, had said.While in its initial days connectivity may be an issue, eventually NMIA will be the “most well connected” airport of India with a network of roads, rail, metro, air taxis and water connectivity. An aerocity is being developed here that will, among other things, have hotels in all ranges from budget to luxury.
