Travellers flying in and out of Mumbai got a temporary reprieve this week. India's civil aviation ministry has stepped in to pause a plan that would have shifted a chunk of international flights away from Mumbai's well-located Terminal 2 to the new Navi Mumbai International Airport, across the harbour and considerably further from the city centre.
The plan belongs to Adani Airport Holdings, which operates both Mumbai airport and the newly built Navi Mumbai facility. Under the original timetable, airlines had to tell Mumbai International Airport by 4 pm on Tuesday which flights they were willing to give up. That deadline triggered enough pushback that the ministry called a roughly 90-minute meeting in New Delhi, then asked the airport operator to hold off while airlines and Adani work out a proper transition plan.
Don't read this as a U-turn. The ministry wants a firm roadmap for the move, not a cancellation. Another meeting is set for October 13, with a final decision expected around October 20. In practice, that means the redistribution of flights between the two Mumbai-area airports is still coming — just with more consultation and, presumably, a less chaotic rollout.
Why should holidaymakers care? Because which airport your flight uses matters a lot in Mumbai. Terminal 2 sits in Andheri East, reasonably handy for much of the city, while Navi Mumbai is across the harbour — the new airport is modern and less congested, but getting there can add significant time depending on where you're staying. If your airline moves its international flights to Navi Mumbai, you'll want to book hotels and transfers with the right airport in mind, or you could find yourself commuting an hour or more in the wrong direction. Expect airlines to publish updated schedules once the roadmap is locked in, and double-check your departure airport before any Mumbai trip in the coming months.
For now, nothing changes overnight. But anyone planning a trip through India's busiest airport hub should keep an eye on the mid-October meetings, because the two-airport era of Mumbai travel is arriving either way.
