Maha CM Devendra Fadnavis urged the Centre to rebuild Mumbai airport’s T1 in phases instead of shifting 14 international routes

The airport’s Adani-run operator, Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), wants those flights to use the new Navi Mumbai airport from March 2027 while it redevelops the old terminal.

The routes include Doha, Jeddah, Dhaka and Kathmandu. The new airport sits about 40 km away.

Fadnavis wrote to Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu with another sequence: build Terminal 1B first, move operations from 1A into it, then pull down 1A.

Government sources say he wants to protect an airport that serves the country’s financial capital. One source warned that a hasty move would backfire.

Airlines have pushed back hard. Gulf carriers, speaking through the Airline Operators Committee Mumbai, asked the ministry whether it has approved the plan.

They also want their historical slots restored. A slot is simply a permitted time to land or take off.

MIAL’s first proposal was bigger. It would have cut Terminal 2’s capacity by around a third, pausing 265 of its 770 weekly international flights.

Airlines and the global airline body IATA objected, citing operational limits. The ministry then told all sides to agree on a transition plan. In a letter dated 30 October, MIAL defended the shift.

It said putting the 14 routes at one airport would spare passengers hassle and keep onward connections smooth during the rebuild.

Sources reported that the letter also asked airlines to propose voluntary slot moves by 3 November, or MIAL could shift all flights on those routes.

Adani Airport Holdings says audits flagged structural safety concerns in the 60-year-old terminal.

The work would affect about five million passengers a year, while 91% of airport traffic would carry on as normal. The redeveloped Terminal 1 is due to reopen by December 2030.

IndiGo and Air India Express have already outlined gradual moves to Navi Mumbai. The ministry is still weighing the objections.

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