Navi Mumbai airport to start first international service with Abu Dhabi flight on Wednesday

Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) is set to begin scheduled international operations on Wednesday with the launch of a direct service to Abu Dhabi, operated by Air India Express.The airline will operate the Navi Mumbai-Abu Dhabi route three times a week, making it the airport’s first scheduled international connection since domestic operations began in Dec last year. Other airlines are also expected to add international flights out of the Navi Mumbai airport in the coming months.Since opening, NMIA has connected to 46 domestic destinations, handled more than 2.3 million passengers and currently records around 150 aircraft movements a day, said the operator, Adani Airports Holdings Ltd.The inaugural international flight also carried the airport’s first international shipment of perishable exports, marking the start of international cargo operations. The airport operator said it expects the service to support exports of time-sensitive agricultural products.Arun Bansal, chief executive officer (CEO), AAHL, said, “The launch of our first scheduled international flight marks the beginning of a new phase in Navi Mumbai International Airport’s journey.”Spread across 1,160 hectares, NMIA is designed for a final capacity of 90 million passengers a year, supported by two parallel runways, modern terminals and dedicated cargo facilities. In the first phase, the airport will be able to handle 20 million passengers annually and 0.5 million tonnes of cargo.