Navi Mumbai Airport To Begin Commercial Flight Ops From Tomorrow

The Adani Group-promoted Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) will commence commercial flight operations on Thursday, according to a statement.

First conceived in 1997 by Maharashtra's city planning agency, City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO), Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the airport in 2018.

The airport was inaugurated by the Prime Minister on October 8 this year.

At the foundation-laying ceremony, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had announced that the "first flight from Navi Mumbai International Airport will take off in December 2019".

Since 2021, Adani Airports Holdings Limited (AAHL), a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Limited (AEL), has led the development, construction, and operational readiness of the greenfield airport, progressing it from accelerated construction to phased commercial operations within a compressed time frame.

Now, finally, the airport, inspired by India's national flower, the lotus, the terminal architecture integrated cultural identity, contemporary design and sustainability features, is set for operations after nearly eight years, which also includes two years of the pandemic.

The development is expected to reduce congestion at the existing Mumbai International Airport, besides significantly boosting capacity in the MMR.

On the first day, IndiGo, Air India Express, Akasa Air and Star Air will operate domestic services, connecting the new facility to nine destinations across India, the private airport operator said on Wednesday.

The airport will handle 15 scheduled departures on the first day, it said, adding that during the initial phase, the facility will operate for 12 hours -- between 8 am and 8 pm, with up to 24 scheduled daily departures to 13 destinations and the capability to manage up to 10 aircraft movements (arrivals and departures) per hour, it added.

The first phase of the five-phased airport has been built at a cost of Rs 19,650 crore.

Spread across 1,160 hectares, the airport will have one terminal and one runway in the first phase, with an annual passenger handling capacity of 20 million.

By the time all five phases of the airport are completed, it will be catering to 90 million passengers annually, along with dedicated cargo terminals and multimodal connectivity.

The entire project is being developed in multiple phases under a special purpose vehicle, Navi Mumbai International Airport Ltd (NMIAL), in which the Adani Group has a 74 per cent stake, and the remaining 26 per cent is owned by CIDCO.

From February next year, operations are planned to progressively scale up to round-the-clock services, the airport operator said.

The opening adds a critical new gateway for a region that has faced sustained congestion for over a decade, it said, adding that planned as part of a distributed aviation framework, NMIA supports Mumbai's transition to a multi-airport system aimed at improving capacity, operational resilience and long-term scalability.

Passenger services from day one will be supported by Digi Yatra-enabled contactless processing at designated touchpoints, along with trained terminal staff across kerbside, check-in, security and boarding areas, the private airport operator said.

Retail and food and beverage offerings have been curated with a focus on affordability and local relevance.

With operations set to begin tomorrow, NMIA is expected to strengthen Mumbai's role as a global gateway and support long-term economic growth through expanded aviation capacity, the airport operator stated.  

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

(Disclaimer: New Delhi Television is a subsidiary of AMG Media Networks Limited, an Adani Group Company.)

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Libya's Army Chief Killed In Plane Crash In Turkey

 A private jet carrying Libya's military chief and four other people crashed after takeoff from Turkey's capital, Ankara, on Tuesday, killing everyone on board.

The Libyan military chief was in Ankara for high-level defense talks aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries and to address regional issues, Turkish officials said.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah confirmed the death of Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad and the others, saying in a statement on Facebook that the "tragic accident" took place as the Libyan delegation was "returning from an official trip to Ankara."

He called it a "great loss" for Libya. Officials in Libya said contact with the plane was lost about half hour into the flight because of a technical malfunction.

Al-Hadad was the top military commander in western Libya. He played a crucial role the U.N.-brokered ongoing efforts to unify Libya's military, which has split much like Libya's institutions.

Turkey did not immediately confirm the deaths, only that wreckage of the Falcon 50 type business jet has been found.

Earlier on Tuesday evening, Turkey's air traffic controllers said they lost contact with the plane, which was en route back to Libya, after takeoff from Esenboga airport.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, said in a social media post that the plane took off at 8:30 p.m. and contact was lost 40 minutes later. The plane issued an emergency landing signal near Haymana, a district south of Ankara, before all communication ceased, Yerlikaya said.

Security camera footage aired on local television stations showed the night sky over Haymana suddenly lit up by what appeared to be an explosion.

While in Ankara, al-Haddad had met with Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler and other officials.

The airport in Ankara was closed and several flights were diverted to other locations, private NTV news channel reported. Turkey's Justice Ministry said four prosecutors have been assigned to investigate the crash, a routine step in such incidents.

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Pawar Factions To Come Together For Pune Polls? Big Hint From Leaders

The elections to the Brihanmumbai Corporation may see rapprochement on both sides of the political divide. While the Thackeray brothers are all set to announce their reunion tomorrow, the two factions of another party are also apparently considering a union in Pune. While senior leaders on both sides of the the Nationalist Congress Party are circumspect in their comments, a spokesman from Ajit Pawar's faction had no qualms about speaking on record.

In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Suraj Chavan said, "If someone has a problem with us and Sharad Pawar's NCP coming together in Pune, it means they want to further their own political agenda. Wherever possible, we will fight together".

There was, however, a caveat: "Further decisions will be made after considering the local circumstances," he added.

What Brass In Ajit Pawar Faction Say

Senior NCP leader Sunil Tatkare was cautious in his response. "Ajit Pawar is currently in Pune. He is interviewing the probable candidates there. We will have a discussion on this tomorrow and things shall be clearer soon," Tatkare told reporters.

Sharad Pawar's Leader Confirms But...

There was a nod of confirmation, though, from the Sharad Pawar faction of the NCP.  Senior leader Ankush Kakade said both factions have in principle decided to join hands during a meeting held in Pune earlier in the day.

"Three leaders from each side including me took part in the meeting. (City NCP(SP) chief) Prashant Jagtap was not there as he is in Mumbai. A detailed discussion took place and it was in principle decided that we will jointly contest the civic polls in Pune, but we will be talking to our other colleagues in the evening," he was quoted as saying by news agency Press Trust of India. 

State NCP-SP chief Shashikant Shinde also told reporters that the party has decided to contest the BMC elections as an ally within the Maha Vikas Aghadi.

"Our Mumbai NCP-SP President and the party's Core Committee are holding discussions with all parties except the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena. Simultaneously, talks are also underway with the Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena. We held a meeting yesterday as part of these ongoing discussions," he told news agency ANI.

"There are slight differences and specific demands regarding certain seats. We will be holding another meeting today to address these. After today's deliberations, we have firmly decided to contest the Mumbai elections as the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)," he added. 

The prospect of a reunion has not gone down too well with the party's Pune chief Prashant Jagtap, who held a three-hour meeting with Supriya Sule and state president Shashikant Shinde to discuss the matter. 

Sources suggest that Jagtap was keen to approach the elections as part of the MVA in Pune, even as the party inches closer to striking a deal with the rival faction. A final decision is expected tomorrow, with Supriya Sule likely to meet the party unit before announcing the decision in the evening.

NCP (SP)'s top leader Supriya Sule said no official proposal has been received for an alliance between the two factions.

She has also denied both events. "I have not received any resignation from Prashant Jagtap, nor has the State NCP-SP President Shashikant Shinde informed me of any such development. I had a two-hour discussion with Jagtap only yesterday," she said. 

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