Setting The Stage For Take-Off: Noida Airport's Runway And ATC To Be Ready By March 2024

Setting the stage for take-off, the runway and the air traffic control (ATC) tower of the Noida International Airport of Jewar are expected to be ready by March 2024.

The status report was released after S P Goyal, the additional chief secretary to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and additional chief secretary, Civil Aviation, UP government, reviewed the progress of the greenfield project at the site on 13 October.

"The construction work of the runway at the airport is almost 70 per cent complete. The airstrip work is targeted to be completed by February-March 2024," the statement added.

The construction of the runway marked a milestone last week, with the commencement of paving the wet mix granular layer (WMM) - an integral part of the runway crust.

The Jewar airport is understood to be the "most important" project of the state government and is being personally monitored by CM Adityanath.

Adityanath, during his inspection of the airport site in September 2022 had asked the project developers to speed up the airport work, by increasing the number of staff and machines, so that the project is completed by early 2024 and the first flight scheduled for September 2024 takes off on time.

Accordingly, the number of machinery and workforce has been increased, with about 7,200 workers currently engaged in the construction of the airport.

NIA To Be Ready By 2024

The upcoming greenfield airport at Jewar in Gautam Buddha Nagar district in Uttar Pradesh will enhance domestic as well as international connectivity to and from Delhi-National Capital region (NCR), Noida and Western Uttar Pradesh.

The first phase spread over 1,334 hectares will have a 3,900-metre runway with a capacity for 28 aircraft stands, cargo hub along with a passenger terminal spanning an area of 100,000 square metres that will cater to domestic and international passengers.

As per the concession agreement, the first phase for 12 million passengers per annum is to be completed and made operational by September 2024.

The Noida airport is being developed by Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, in partnership with the state government.

Zurich Airport International AG won the bid to develop Noida International Airport in 2019 and the concession period officially commenced from 01 October 2021.

Following the ground-breaking ceremony by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2021, the first phase of the airport is expected to become operational before its scheduled deadline of 29 September 2024.