Taking off at Navi Mumbai

Mumbai: The Greenfield Airport in Panvel, Navi Mumbai, could well be one of India's biggest airports, if one has to take into account the area
and traffic handling projections. Though the total project area will be 20.53sq km, the built-up area will be 11.4sq km.
Currently, CIDCO is in possession of 11.53 sq km of land -57 per cent of the total land required. "The remaining area will be used for access roads, channels, creek diversions, and other allied facilities for the airport. More than 2.5sq km of area will be claimed by removing hillocks, straightening two rivers, and replanting mangroves along the creek,'' a CIDCO official told TOI.
The cost of the project is pegged at Rs 4,056 but in all likelihood, it will go up to Rs 6,000 crore. The internal rate of return, calculated for the airport, is 16 per cent, said an official. The central government has estimated that since the year 2000, there has been a 20 per cent increase in Mumbai's air passenger and cargo traffic. The numbers are expected to rise with a passenger flow of 64 million by the year 2030-31.
Mumbai's current airport is expected to reach saturation point by 2012, and the new airport, say officials, should be operational by year 2015.
The Navi Mumbai airport will have two runways, along with two full-length taxi ways on either side. It will have the capacity to handle up to 50 aircrafts a day, and the aerodrome has been designed to accommodate large aircrafts like the Air Bus 380.
22/11/08 Chittaranjan Tembhekar/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Nov 2008, New Nov 2008