Navi Mumbai: The citizens witnessed the first landing at the much-awaited Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) in the noon. The Indian Air Force landed its C-295 aircraft at the first trial landing event at the yet-to-be-operational airport. The aircraft was seen hovering in the sky before the trial landing and after the successful landing, a water canon salute was given.
The landing was scheduled at 11.50 am and marks a historic event for the aviation sector in Maharashtra and India.
Ahead of Maharashtra assembly elections, the trial landing was initially scheduled on October 5 and it was expected that PM Modi will be present. However, it was delayed due to technical reasons and rescheduled.
For the inaugural landing at the newly built air strip, a C-295 defense transport aircraft from Gandhinagar and Sukhoi MK 30 fighter aircraft from Pune were specially flown in. The event is a milestone wherein the landing capacity of the newly built airport will be highlighted.
For the crucial event just before the state assembly elections, along with CM Shinde and Dy CM Fadnavis, union minister of civil aviation Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu and minister for state (aviation), Murlidhar Mohol- the MP from Pune were also expected to be present today.
Operational Plan
The airport, which has been under development for several years, aims to kick off domestic operations by March 2025, followed by international services in June 2025. Spanning an area of 1,160 acres, the airport project comes with a total estimated cost of Rs 16,700 crore. It will be equipped with two runways positioned 1.55 kilometres apart from each other.
Once the airport at Navi Mumbai is operational, it will second international airport in Mumbai Metropolitan Region and will address the capacity constraints of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
Last month, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) successfully completed the Instrument Landing System (ILS) testing at NMIA, marking a crucial step in ensuring the airport’s readiness. Sanjay Shirsat, the newly appointed chairman of the City and Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO), recently conducted a site inspection at the airport. CIDCO holds a 26 per cent stake in the NMIA project.
