India’s second airport for Mumbai started commercial flights on Thursday, with the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) opening operations on Christmas Day. The new airport is expected to reduce pressure on Mumbai’s existing airport, which has been handling more passengers than it was built for.
Flights began with IndiGo, Air India Express, Akasa Air, and Star Air connecting Navi Mumbai to several Indian cities. For now, the airport will function for 12 hours a day. Authorities plan to increase operations in phases and move to 24-hour services from February 2026.