The first phase of the Noida International Airport is focused to operationalise by year end, chief executive officer Christoph Schnellmann said last week.
The greenfield airport at Jewar in Gautam Buddha Nagar district in Uttar Pradesh is being developed to enhance domestic as well as international connectivity to and from Delhi-National Capital region (NCR), Noida and western Uttar Pradesh.
“Runway asphalting and paving activity is underway. Baggage system is being installed. The next few months will see construction activity accelerate. We are also working with partners to develop retail and food and beverage experience at the airport,” Schnellman said.
The airport — billed to be India’s largest upon completion — is being developed by Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a fully-owned subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, in partnership with the state government.
Zurich Airport International AG won the bid to develop Noida International Airport in 2019 and the concession period officially commenced from 1 October 2021 and and will run for 40 years.
Tata Projects are the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) partners on the projects.
Spanning across 1,334 hectares, the first phase of the Noida International Airport will have a 3,900-metre runway with a capacity for 28 aircraft stands, cargo hub along with a passenger terminal spanning an area of 100,000 square metres that will cater to domestic and international passengers.
Estimated to cost Rs 5,700 crore, the airport at its opening at the end of 2024 will have the capacity to handle traffic of 12 million passengers annually, with the potential for further development in additional construction phases.
After the completion of the fourth phase, the airport will have the capacity to manage 70 million passengers per year.
The first expansion of the airport — construction of the second runway and the terminal building — will start once it reaches 80 per cent of the 12 million passengers per year capacity.
Similarly, the development of the third, fourth and fifth runways will begin when footfall increases from 12 million to 30 million, 50 million and 70 million respectively.