NOIDA: Delhi-NCR’s second international airport will be formally inaugurated on Saturday, adding Jewar to the country’s aviation map and creating both space and means for the national capital — already India’s largest aviation hub — to play a much bigger role in connectivity with the world.A day before the inauguration, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said Noida International Airport (NIA) will not just strengthen commerce and connectivity, but also ease pressure on Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi.Read more: Noida International Airport Inauguration Live Updates:“Tomorrow, March 28, is a day of immense importance for the people of Uttar Pradesh and the NCR,” Modi wrote on X. “Phase I of Noida International Airport will be inaugurated… Noida airport is among key greenfield projects in our nation. In addition to passenger services, it will have a robust cargo ecosystem, thus boosting the logistics sector,” he added, attaching photographs of the terminal with the post.Flight operations from NIA are likely to begin in May.The PM is scheduled to arrive at the airport at 11.30am on Saturday, go on a walkthrough of the terminal building, and formally inaugurate the airport around noon before addressing a public gathering. The event is expected to draw large crowds from Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr and other parts of western UP. Three pandals have been set up to accommodate more than 1 lakh people.Already the country’s main aviation hub, with IGI’s footfall crossing 7 crore passengers annually and still room to accommodate much more across its three terminals, NIA will add a capacity of 1.2 crore fliers annually to Delhi-NCR’s airport infrastructure, allowing carriers more room for expansion and giving flyers more options.Chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who will accompany the PM on Saturday, posted on X that NIA will help the state emerging as a global connectivity hub. “Tomorrow, the grand inauguration of the first phase of Noida International Airport in Jewar, equipped with world-class facilities, will be carried out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This airport will open new doors of economic progress and will also give fresh momentum to the state’s journey of development and prosperity,” he said.Last week, the CM reviewed preparations for the airport’s inauguration.Phase I of NIA has been built at an investment of about Rs 11,200 crore. The airport has a 3.9km runway capable of handling wider aircraft and advanced airfield lighting for all-weather and round-the-clock operations.Beyond passenger traffic, the airport is being billed as a logistics hub, too. Its cargo ecosystem will include an integrated cargo terminal, logistics zones and a multi-modal cargo hub. The facility is designed to handle more than 2.5 lakh metric tonnes annually in the first phase, with an expansion potential to around 18 lakh metric tonnes. A dedicated 40-acre maintenance, repair and overhaul facility is also part of the plan.The airport has an expansion roadmap till 2043, which involves four phases of land acquisition. If passenger footfall grows along estimated lines, the airport will eventually have two terminals and two runways with an annual passenger capacity of 7 crore.Ahead of the inauguration, Special Protection Group (SPG) — responsible for the PM’s security — on Friday carried out a full-scale rehearsal covering arrival, movement and emergency response. On Saturday, visitors will be allowed at the venue only till 9am. Live streaming will be barred, and black clothes won’t be permitted as well.
