Akasa Air plans to move its Mumbai-Jeddah service to Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) in December 2026, joining a wider shift of airline operations between the city’s two airports.
The airline and airport operator Adani Airport Holdings Ltd. said the route would transfer in phases from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA). Bookings for NMIA departures opened Oct. 26 through Akasa’s website, mobile app and online travel agencies. The companies named December 2026 as the start window but gave neither a specific first-flight date nor a weekly departure count.
Akasa and Adani presented the move as part of Mumbai’s two-airport system and said NMIA would increase international connectivity and give passengers more choice. Their announcement described an intended benefit for travelers rather than a measured change in passenger volumes; it did not include a forecast for the route.
Other carriers also plan to add operations at NMIA. Air India Group and Adani said their broader phased transition is intended to allow redevelopment of Terminal 1 at CSMIA. Air India Express plans to start four domestic flights a day from NMIA in December 2026. Selected West Asia services are slated to move in later phases, with the group expecting the transition to finish by the IATA Northern Summer 2027 season.
The route plan comes against operating constraints at Mumbai’s existing airport. The Ministry of Civil Aviation said CSMIA’s runway layout limits simultaneous use because its two runways intersect. In a Feb. 27, 2024, release, the ministry listed declared peak-hour capacity at 46 aircraft movements per hour during high-intensity runway operations and 44 outside those periods. It also said revised limits of 44 and 42 movements per hour, respectively, took effect Feb. 20, 2024.
Akasa’s Oct. 23 travel update said flights to and from Jeddah were suspended through Nov. 10, 2026, amid the security situation in Saudi Arabia. EconoTimes previously covered Akasa’s Jeddah suspension cutoff.
