Mumbai: Mumbai airport is set to temporarily cut 265 of its 770 weekly international departure slots from Oct 25, and travellers are likely to pay for it one way or another this winter. The cut will hit 46 Indian and foreign airlines and remove about 38 international departures a day. If an airline moves the cut flights to Navi Mumbai, passengers face pricier cab rides. If it cancels them outright or moves them to other cities like Hyderabad or Bengaluru, fewer seats from Mumbai in the festive peak could push up fares.
To draw carriers, Navi Mumbai Airport is offering a 100% waiver on landing fees for new international flights, AAHL said, adding it plans cash vouchers for international flyers to offset user development fee gap between the two airports. For now, MIAL’s plan is to begin from Oct 26 the allocation of vacated assets at T2 such as check-in counters, baggage belts, boarding gates and operational office space to scheduled domestic operators to facilitate the transition of around five million domestic passengers per annum (mppa) from T1 to T2. In its Oct 1 letter, MIAL said airlines must name the slots they will give up by 1600 hours on Oct 6, failing which MIAL will pick them.
Terminal 1 has long been identified as a safety-related concern, with only temporary mitigation measures implemented over the years due to the absence of a viable alternative, AAHL said, adding “extensive consultations with airlines on future of T1 are ongoing since 2020”. Passenger safety must remain paramount, and any further delay in commencing this process could adversely impact safety and convenience of millions of travellers, Bansal added. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Mumbai | Silver Rate in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai | Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Petrol Price in Mumbai | Diesel Price in Mumbai | CNG Price in Mumbai | LPG Price in Mumbai