Akasa plans 50 departures from Navi Mumbai: CEO

Akasa Plans 50 Departures from Navi Mumbai: CEO

By ET Bureau

Last Updated: Jun 07, 2025, 12:33:00 AM IST

Akasa Air is poised to launch 50 flights from the forthcoming Navi Mumbai airport, initiating with 15 departures that will encompass both domestic and international routes. CEO Vinay Dube expects Akasa Air to have the largest proportion of its network originating from this new airport.

Mumbai: Akasa Air is set to operate 50 flights from the soon-to-be-inaugurated Navi Mumbai airport, initially rolling out about 15 departures that will mix domestic and international services, as stated by Vinay Dube, the airline’s CEO. The Navi Mumbai airport is anticipated to open by the end of August, with the exact date yet to be confirmed. Dube mentioned that Akasa Air is likely to operate the highest number of flights from this location.

“I’m confident that there will be other airlines, but I don’t think any airline in India, or even globally, will have a larger proportion of their network based out of Navi Mumbai Airport compared to Akasa,” Dube told reporters at a recent virtual roundtable.

In addition, Arun Bansal, CEO of Adani Airports Holdings Limited, remarked, “Their rapid expansion and forward-thinking strategy make them an ideal ally in NMIA’s evolution into a significant domestic and international hub.”

As a low-cost carrier, Akasa operates approximately 32 flights daily from Mumbai. “Currently, we have around 32 departures from Mumbai, and we anticipate increasing that number to about 75 to 80 departures as we approach the winter season. This is critically important for us,” said Dube.

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The airline plans to sustain its operations with “no strategies to consolidate operations,” Dube confirmed. Additionally, the airline aims to enhance connectivity for tier-II cities through its Navi Mumbai hub. Akasa Air becomes the second airline to formalize an agreement with Navi Mumbai airport. IndiGo, which will be the first to launch flights from the new airport, intends to begin with over 18 daily departures to 15 cities from the moment the airport opens and aims to scale its operations to 79 departures by November. Akasa Air’s initial plan includes over 100 weekly domestic departures, with aspirations to expand to over 300 domestic and 50 international departures per week during the winter schedule. The carrier is also focused on establishing 10 parking bases by the end of FY27, targeting international growth in pivotal Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian markets.

Dube mentioned that the airline would secure a combination of prime slots along with slots distributed throughout the day.