Navi Mumbai International Airport

The international airport Navi Mumbai International Airport is located in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is the other airport in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

November 1997 saw the first presentation of plans for a new airport in the Mumbai metropolitan area. The Navi Mumbai airport was approved by the Indian government in 2007, and the state government designated the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) as the principal organization responsible for carrying out the project. By 2032, the project, which is projected to cost ₹167 billion (US$2.0 billion), would be built in three stages and able to handle 2.5 million tons of cargo and 90 million people yearly.
 

There is only one runway at the airport, which is 3,700 meters (12,100 feet) long and oriented northeast-southwest. The airport's single passenger terminal can accommodate 20 million passengers annually after the first phase. After the three linking terminals are constructed in phases, the lotus-shaped terminal buildings will be finished. The cargo terminal can accommodate 0.8 million tonnes of goods annually and spans 33,000 m2 (360,000 sq ft).

History of Navi Mumbai International Airport

The City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) proposed constructing a new, single-runway airport in Navi Mumbai in November 1997. A committee was subsequently established by the Ministry of Civil Aviation to look into the possibility of building a second airport to complement Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in the Mumbai Metropolitan Area. After looking into a number of locations in the Mumbai region, the group suggested Mandwa-Rewas for the new airport. The Navi Mumbai location was deemed suitable only for a domestic airport because of its single runway. Two parallel runways were later added to CIDCO's original plans. Located around 35 kilometers (22 miles) from the current airport, the airport was constructed on a 9.5 km² (3.7 sq mi) tract of land along National Highway 348 near Panvel. About 2,900 ha (7,200 acres) of coastal land were needed for the project, of which 1,320 ha (3,300 acres) were needed for the airport and 245 ha (610 acres) were needed for the mangrove park.
 

In August 2007, the Indian government's Union Cabinet sanctioned the development of a new greenfield airport in Navi Mumbai using a public-private partnership model. Rail India Technical and Economic Service took on the duty of developing the airport master plan in January 2008. On July 30, 2008, the Maharashtra government named CIDCO as the project's nodal agency. The project was intended to be completed in three stages, beginning with the establishment of an operational capacity to handle 20 million passengers annually in the first phase, increasing to 60-65 million in the second phase, and 90 million passengers and 2.5 million tonnes of cargo annually by the third phase in 2032. The airport is designed with a cargo area of 100,000 m² (1,100,000 sq ft) and a terminal space of 250,000 m² (2,700,000 sq ft).

Planning and development of Navi Mumbai International Airport

The Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change approved the project on November 23, 2010, and the Ministry of Defense approved it at the end of 2010. The Central Water and Power Research Station was entrusted with examining the airport's hydrological impact on adjacent water bodies, while IIT Bombay was tasked with performing an environmental impact assessment. With the first two phases costing ₹95 billion (US$1.1 billion), the project is expected to cost ₹167 billion (US$2.0 billion). The estimated cost of the pre-development work is ₹23.58 billion (US$280 million), which includes ₹8 billion (US$95 million) for extra activities and ₹15.38 billion (US$180 million) for land acquisition.
 

In February 2014, CIDCO released a worldwide tender for the project. Four of the nine options that the agency received were shortlisted and forwarded to the Project Management Committee for additional consideration. GVK Group and GMR Group submitted their final bids for the first two stages following numerous deadline extensions. Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), led by GVK, was announced as the winning bidder on February 13, 2017. CIDCO was offered a revenue share of 12.6% by GVK and 10.44% by GMR Group. Although the project was approved by the government in April 2017, local resistance prevented land acquisition from starting until June. Ten villages and 2,786 households were moved as a result of the effort. They received 18 months of rent, ₹1,500 (US$18) per square foot of land, and a developed plot of land that would have quadrupled the roof area in a different location. Protests caused work to stop once more in October 2017, but it started up again a week later.

Construction and opening of Navi Mumbai International Airport

During the airport's groundbreaking ceremony on February 18, 2018, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the foundation plaque. Zaha Hadid Architects of London won a 12-week design competition to design the airport's passenger terminal and Air Traffic Control tower in March 2018. In August 2018, CIDCO issued a tender to pick the project's engineering, procurement, and construction contractor. Based on hydrological studies of the Ulwe River watershed, it was suggested that a channel be cut to divert the Ulwe River into Moha Creek. In June 2019, CIDCO finished pre-development work on the Ulwe River diversion. Ulwe Hill was flattened, the marsh area was restored, the project site was expanded by 5.5 meters (18 feet), and electrical transmission lines were moved.
 

Larsen & Toubro was given a contract by GVK to construct the airport in September 2019. Adani Airport Holdings and CIDCO established Navi Mumbai International Airport Limited (NMIAL), a special-purpose entity, after the Adani Group assumed management of the airport project in 2021. In August of that year, construction got underway. The entire project site was only turned over in July 2022 following resettlement procedures, even though the first land acquisition for the core area was finished in 2019. Adani declared in November 2023 that 57% of the first phase's work was complete. Modi began the airport's initial phase of public operations on October 8, 2025.
 

On December 25, 2025, the airport opened for business. An Indigo flight to Hyderabad at 8:40 a.m. and an IndiGo flight from Bengaluru at 8 a.m. were the first planned commercial arrivals. Both flights were operated by the same aircraft.
 

The airport covers an area of 1,160 ha (4.5 square miles).

Runways

The airport's only runway, 08/26, is 3,700 meters (12,100 feet) long and runs from northeast to southwest. With its three-degree glide angle and category II Instrument Landing System, it could land at up to 300 meters (980 feet) of visibility. In the future, the airport will have two parallel runways that will enable simultaneous operations. A procedure to select a consultant to perform a techno-feasibility study for the airport's third runway was initiated by CIDCO in 2025.
 

On December 25, 2025, the airport opened for business. An Indigo flight to Hyderabad at 8:40 a.m. and an IndiGo flight from Bengaluru at 8 a.m. were the first planned commercial arrivals. Both flights were operated by the same aircraft.

Terminals

Twenty million passengers can pass through the passenger terminal each year. After the three linking terminals are constructed in phases, the lotus-shaped terminal buildings will be finished. The airport would be able to handle 90 million people when it was finished. Travelators, lounges, food courts, and other passenger amenities are available at the airport.
 

There will be 67 general aviation aircraft stands at the airport, along with a separate heliport. By the end of 2025, activities for private and charter aircraft would move from the present airport to this one.
 

The international cargo terminal is 23,700 m2 (255,000 sq ft), whereas the domestic cargo terminal is 33,000 m2 (360,000 sq ft). The airport can handle 0.8 million tonnes of cargo annually after the first phase.

Other facilities

Three aircraft hangars and 151,000 m2 (1,630,000 sq ft) make up the airport's fuel farm. Overlooking the single runway, a makeshift air traffic control tower has been constructed. In order to provide coverage for the intended two parallel runways, a higher tower next to the terminal buildings is expected to replace the tower once it has been in operation for six to seven years.

Connectivity

National Highway 348, which runs along the airport's eastern boundary, and Aamra Marg, which runs along its western boundary, connect the airport. To improve access to the airport, CIDCO plans to construct two six-lane roads along the shore. While the Kharghar coastal road would link Kharghar to the airport and subsequently to the central business district of Belapur, the Ulwe coastal road would link the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link to the airport. Early 2026 is when both projects are expected to be finished.
 

Navi Mumbai Metro Line 1 and the proposed Gold Line (Line 8) of the Mumbai Metro will be connected to the airport. The airport and the Mumbai Suburban Railway's Port Line are connected via the Targhar Railway station. The proposed high-speed rail route between Hyderabad and Mumbai will also have its terminal station at the airport.

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