Mumbai: A mock check-in process was carried out and dummy boarding passes with baggage tags were issued to top aviation officials during a site visit to the Navi Mumbai airport on Tuesday. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials visited the airport to assess its readiness, said a press release issued by Cidco.
The mock check-in process “was well appreciated by the inspection team”, it said.
The under-construction Navi Mumbai airport is set to be inaugurated on April 17. Domestic passenger flights will commence in the second half of May and international flights by July.
“DGCA conducted a comprehensive assessment, held a crucial meeting with the officials concerned to assess the airport’s readiness. The meeting was the culmination of a full day inspection of the airport by the AAI and DGCA team,” it added.
During the site visit, DGCA inspected major areas, including the runway, apron, taxiways, air traffic control tower, terminal building and baggage handling system, said Cidco, terming the visit an important milestone for commencement of flight operations. The aeronautical information publication (AIP) of Navi Mumbai international airport (NMIA) was expected to be published by Feb 6, but it hasn’t been done yet. An AIP is a document that provides operational, navigational and general information about the airport to stakeholders such as airlines and their pilots.
Among the concerns of passengers, especially those living in the western suburbs and north of Mumbai, is the time taken to reach the new airport. Cidco said it has planned seamless connectivity through road, suburban rail, Metro and water transport systems, in addition to the proposed Mumbai-Hyderabad high speed rail corridor. When the airport commences flights though, only road connectivity will be available.
In phase 1, when it commences operations three months down the line, Navi Mumbai airport will have one runway and a terminal building with a capacity to handle 20 million passengers per annum. Mumbai airport currently handles about 55 million passengers per annum. Terminal 1 of Mumbai airport will be shut down in Oct-end and about 150 flights will be moved to the new airport. Airlines will decide which of their flights will move to Navi Mumbai. NMIA’s terminal is expected to be saturated by mid-2026.