Navi Mumbai airport: Landing trial on Oct 5, domestic flights from March, international operations from June

Navi Mumbai: The upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) is set to conduct its first trial landing of an aircraft on October 5, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi expected to attend. Domestic operations at the airport are scheduled to begin in March 2025, followed by international operations in June 2025.

Sanjay Shirsat, the newly appointed chairman of the City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO), inspected the airport site on Tuesday. He was accompanied by CIDCO vice chairman and managing director Vijay Singhal, along with officials from the Adani Group, which is constructing the airport. CIDCO holds a 26% stake in the project.

Addressing the media after the site inspection, Shirsat said, “The airport construction work is progressing at a satisfactory pace to meet our targets. On October 5, Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft will land at the airport for a trial run on the runway. We plan to conduct the trial in the presence of the prime minister. All necessary arrangements are being made with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde himself looking into it.”

Modi is expected to inaugurate several infrastructure projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region in the first week of October, including the first phase of the Mumbai Metro Line 3 from Aarey Colony to the Bandra Kurla Complex.

The NMIA project, long in the making and estimated to cost over ₹16,700 crore, is finally on track to commence operations from the planned March 2025 target. The pre-development works have been completed, and the actual airport construction work is currently on.

Last month, the Airports Authority of India completed Instrument Landing System (ILS) testing, which calibrates the flight path to ensure the operational readiness of the airport.

Following the ILS test, a report was submitted to prepare the instrument approach procedure, which will be followed by the licensing of NMIA after further tests and obtaining the requisite permissions to make the runway operational.

For the trial landing in October, a C-130J, which is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft, and a Sukhoi Su-30, a twin-engine super maneuverable fighter aircraft, will be used.

Shirsat said the new airport will be a game-changer for Navi Mumbai. “There will be four inter-connected terminals with 350 aircraft parking facilities, along with metro, rail and road connectivity from all sides. We have given instructions to the concerned officials for speedy implementation to ensure the project is completed in the specified time line to start operations from March 2025,” he added.