Navi Mumbai airport getting ready for inauguration

Raigad: With the formal inauguration planned in April followed by the launch of commercial operations in May, the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) is abuzz with activities.

Various inspections are being conducted before the NMIA is commissioned. NMIA would be the second international airport in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region after the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai.

On October 11, 2024, an Indian Air Force C-295, a large multi-role tactical airlifter, made the inaugural landing.

On December 29, 2024, an A320 aircraft of the IndiGo Airlines successfully touched down on the runway - which was the second landing.

The back-to-back test landings represent a significant milestone in the development of the Greenfield International Airport, which is scheduled to be operational in early 2025.

The NMIA in the Navi Mumbai-Raigad is a Greenfield airport project.

Now teams of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have undertaken an inspection of NMIA.

The DGCA, India’s primary aviation safety regulatory body, conducted the comprehensive assessment and observed the preparedness of the NMIAL followed by site visits. The DGCA inspected major areas of the airport including runway, apron, taxiways, ATC tower terminal building, baggage handling systems among other things.

Also, the AAI, India’s airport operator demonstrated their operational readiness by conducting a mock check-in process for the dignitaries wherein they issued dummy boarding passes and baggage tags, which was well appreciated by the inspection team.

During the inspection, Vipin Kumar, Chairman, AAI, Prakash Nikam, Regional Director of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), Vijay Singhal, IAS, Vice Chairman & Managing Director, City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO), Shantanu Goel, Joint Managing Director, CIDCO and Geetha Pillai, Chief General Manager (Transport & Airport) along with the officials of Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIAL) were present, official sources said.

The team of Adani Airport Holdings (AAHL) was also present there.

The DGCA held a crucial meeting with the concerned officials to assess the airport’s readiness.

The NMIA is also in touch with Customs, Immigration, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), India Meteorological Department (IMD), and other stakeholders.

The NMIA is managed by NMIAL, a joint venture between AAHL and CIDCO.

NMIA to be named after the late DB Patil

The Navi Mumbai International Airport is expected to be named after the late lawyer, politician, farmers’ leader, and social activist Dinkar Balu Patil (13 January 13, 1926 – June 24, 2013), who was popularly known as D B Patil and commands tremendous respect in the Raigad area of coastal Konkan belt.

The Navi Mumbai Project Affected People (PAP) and members of the Agri-Koli community have held large protests over the last few years to push for their demand to name the airport after D B Patil. The NMIA is proposed to be named Loknete DB Patil Navi Mumbai Airport.