Mumbai:

Jeet Adani, Director, Airports of the Adani Group, on Sunday, hailed the pivotal landmark of Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) successfully carrying out its first commercial validation flight with the touchdown of an IndiGo Airlines A 320 plane, paving the way for the greenfield airport to become operational in early 2025.

“A historic milestone as Navi Mumbai International Airport welcomed its first commercial validation flight! Proud of our team’s hard work and grateful for our stakeholders’ unwavering support. Together, we are creating a world-class Gateway To Goodness!” Jeet Adani said in a post on X.

The validation flight moment witnessed by senior officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Airports Authority of India (AAI), as well as the Adani Airport Holdings Limited (AAHL), marks the airport’s alignment with global aviation standards.

The touchdown of a commercial aircraft validates and establishes the synchronised functioning of Instrument Approach Procedures at the NMIA. The exercise includes technical assessment, landing and take-off manoeuvres that the DGCA into account to validate the data collected from the flight and for the NMIA to receive the aerodrome license, which is essential to operate the airport.

After the successful landing, the NMIA’s established flight procedures will be published in the Electronic Aeronautical Information Publication (eAIP) for international promulgation.

The NMIA had earlier successfully conducted the flight calibration of the Instrument Landing System (ILS) and Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI), subsequently drafting instrument approach procedures to prepare itself for the arrival of the validation flight of the airport.

Jeet Adani joined the Adani Group in 2019, after attending the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He started his career in the Group CFO’s office, looking at Strategic Finance, Capital Markets and Risk & Governance Policy.

This role involves working with all the listed verticals of the Adani Group. Jeet Adani is also spearheading the Adani Airports business as well as the Adani Digital Labs – which is all set to build a super app to cater to all the consumers of Adani Group businesses.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

The Navi Mumbai International Airport saw its first successful trial landing on Friday after an Indian Air Force aircraft touched down on the runway, marking a major milestone in the airport’s journey towards becoming operational early next year. 

An Indian Air Force C295, a multi-role tactical airlifter, made a successful landing on the south runway of the airport, receiving a water salute from the fire brigade and a flypast by Sukhoi 30 jets. 

The development of the Navi Mumbai International Airport was started by the Adani Group in 2021 and will be the conglomerate’s first greenfield airport after construction is completed early next year. Jeet Adani, Director of Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) said he was proud of the progress that Navi Mumbai International Airport Limited (NMIAL) had made and that the trial landing was a historic moment for Navi Mumbai. 

The event was also attended by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar and Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol, among others.

Taking to social media platform X, Jeet Adani said, “A historic moment for Navi Mumbai as we celebrate the first landing on the new airport with the Indian Air Force’s C-295! Grateful for the support of @IAF_MCC, including a stunning low pass by the Su-30. This marks the dawn of a new era in Indian aviation, where the sky is no longer the limit. Together, we soar higher!”

A historic moment for Navi Mumbai as we celebrate the first landing on the new airport with the Indian Air Force’s C-295! Grateful for the support of @IAF_MCC , including a stunning low pass by the Su-30. This marks the dawn of a new era in Indian aviation, where the sky is no… pic.twitter.com/gxdJma94Ed

— Jeet Adani (@jeet_adani1) October 11, 2024

Talking about the development of the airport, Jeet Adani said, “As AAHL’s first greenfield airport, NMIAL represents years of planning, investment and hard work. We are grateful to the Government of Maharashtra, the regulatory bodies including CIDCO and Airports Authority of India and all the other stakeholders who have come together to make this project possible. This world-class airport will play a pivotal role in the region’s growth, serving as a crucial hub for travellers across the globe”.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that the Navi Mumbai airport will help ease congestion at the Mumbai airport and that the two airports will be connected through metro and roads, according to news agency IANS.

He said the airport would be “India’s greenest airport with the potential to generate 36 MW of solar and wind energy” and “India’s first multi-modal aviation hub connected by expressway, highways, two metro rail corridors, high-speed rails”.

The Navi Mumbai airport, which will have four terminals, will eventually have the capacity to handle 90 million passengers a year and 8 lakh tonnes of cargo.