Air India refuses to shift operations to Navi Mumbai Airport !

Reason cited: economic losses

Navi Mumbai – Air India has expressed its inability to commence operations from Navi Mumbai Airport before the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority, citing rising costs due to high charges, inadequate connectivity, and dual airport operations.

Air India has stated that, under the current circumstances, operating flights from Navi Mumbai Airport is not economically viable. It also said that shifting part of its operations to Navi Mumbai International Airport would increase costs, reduce efficiency, and strain resources. The airline added that the assumption of strong demand to shift operations is premature, and until sufficient traffic volume builds at Navi Mumbai, splitting operations between Mumbai and Navi Mumbai will increase costs and reduce efficiency.

Former pilot Captain Abhijit Adsul said:

1.   If flights are operated simultaneously from both Mumbai and Navi Mumbai airports, manpower and other requirements will double, leading to increased costs.

2.   The cost of operating flights from Navi Mumbai Airport could be higher compared to Noida Airport – by 84 per cent for domestic flights and 113 per cent for international flights.

3.   Due to inadequate metro and road connectivity to Navi Mumbai Airport, most passengers prefer Mumbai Airport. Especially for passengers from western Mumbai, reaching Navi Mumbai is difficult.

4.   Due to the lack of clarity regarding the closure of Terminal 1 at Mumbai Airport, it is difficult to plan operations from Navi Mumbai Airport.

5.   Most pilots, air hostesses, and other staff reside in the western suburbs. Pilots are required to report at least one hour before domestic flights and one-and-a-half hours before international flights, while cabin crew must report two hours in advance. Until proper transport connectivity to Navi Mumbai Airport is established, airlines are likely to avoid operating from there.

Flights currently operating from Navi Mumbai Airport

At present, airlines such as Air India Express, IndiGo, Star Air, and Akasa Air are operating flights from Navi Mumbai Airport to Bengaluru, Delhi, Goa (Mopa), Kochi, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Nagpur, and Vadodara.