The inaugural flight from Lucknow landed at Noida International Airport at 7:55 am on Monday, as the new airport began commercial operations following its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28.
IndiGo flight 6E-2278 departed from Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport in Lucknow and landed at Noida International Airport at 7:55 am on Monday. The return service, IndiGo flight 6E-2279, is scheduled to leave Noida airport at 6:55 pm and arrive in Lucknow at 8 pm.
Notably, Akasa Air is also set to launch daily services from Noida airport to Bengaluru and Navi Mumbai from Tuesday (June 16), becoming the second carrier to operate from the airport.
Although commercial passenger services began on Monday, the airport’s first cargo flight is scheduled to depart on Wednesday (June 17), according to an earlier announcement by Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL). The cargo service will operate on a domestic route.
Noida airport begins commercial operations
At present, many passengers travelling between Noida and Lucknow either use flights operating through Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi or travel by road.
Officials view the new flight connection as a key development for Uttar Pradesh’s aviation sector. It is aimed at improving connectivity between the state’s administrative and business hubs.
The airport has been built under a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement by Yamuna International Airport Private Limited, which is a subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG.
The facility has a 3,900-metre runway designed to accommodate wide-body aircraft. It is also equipped with modern navigation infrastructure, including the Instrument Landing System (ILS) and advanced airfield lighting systems.
Shailendra Bhatia, nodal officer, NIAL, told HT, “It is an emotional moment for me personally being associated with the project from the first day. It is a historic day when the first flight will land at th Noida International Airport. The airport has put in place security arrangements in accordance with the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security’s (BCAS) standard operating procedures.”
“Zurich and the NIAL team are ready to welcome the inaugural flight and passengers. The first inbound flight will be from Lucknow to Noida while the first outbound flight will be from Noida airport to Lucknow,” Bhatia said.
Officials had earlier said that a multi-layered security network has been put in place at the airport, including AI-based surveillance systems. Nearly 1,030 personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) have been deployed to strengthen security measures. Also, Uttar Pradesh Police has set up a dedicated police station for the airport.
