3 min readNoidaMar 31, 2026 08:42 AM IST
The first flight from the Noida International Airport —inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the presence of Uttar Pradesh CM yogi Adityanath on Saturday — could take off in four weeks, a top official said.
Speaking with The Indian Express, Rakesh Kumar Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL), said, “The flights will operate within four weeks. We have already received all the security clearance. We had earlier received the aerodrome licence from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.”
Officials said that, initially, domestic flights will operate at the airport that will connect Jewar to major Indian cities, adding that several airlines have already shown interest. The details of the airlines that will operate at the airport will be made public later, said Singh.
The completion of the Airport Security Program, a comprehensive security blueprint, is pending, the NIAL CEO added. “The Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPAL) has already applied for the Airport Security Program. This will ensure that everyone working at the airport, including vendors and officials, among others, have a security clearance. This is an important step in securing the safety and security of the airport,” he said.
Shailendra Bhatia, Nodal Officer, NIAL, said, “The number of flights and the destinations will be decided after getting the Airport Security Program.” The airport, he added, will serve the whole northern India. “Its multi-modal connectivity is unique. It will also boost the industrial and service sector around the airport,” he underlined.
Earlier airport officials had told The Indian Express that the major cities that will be connected via the airport will be Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Goa, Pune, Lucknow and Jaipur. They said that Indigo and Akasa were among the major airlines that had shown interest in operating from the airport
According to the officials, the first phase of NIA that spans across 1,334 hectares has two entry gates, 10 boarding gates, 48 check in counters that also includes 20 self baggage drop counters.
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With the capacity to cater to 12 million passengers, mainly from Western Uttar Pradesh, including Noida, Greater Noida, Agra, and Mathura, officials said that the airport will have separate counters for arrivals and departures, one lounge each for domestic and international passengers and an international carousel.
As per NIAL officials, the airport is scheduled to be completed in three phases by 2047 for which the land acquisition is still undergoing.
The first phase has been built with a cost of Rs 11,282 crore. The cost of the entire project which will consist of six runways and four terminals is estimated to be Rs 29,560 crore.
