NEW DELHI: The deadlock over shifting of international flights from Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) to Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) is finally thawing with India’s biggest airlines — Air India Group and IndiGo — agreeing to do so. AI will start doing so from December and IndiGo will start from next Feb.Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) says the planned transfer of around 30 lakh passengers, accounting for about 60% of the traffic targeted for relocation in the first phase, “will create the necessary headroom for the phased redevelopment of CSMIA’s Terminal 1. The initial phase aims to shift about 50 lakh passengers to Navi Mumbai, enabling critical safety enhancements, modernisation, upgraded passenger facilities and expanded handling capacity at CSMIA.”“Air India group will commence phased transition of some of its West Asia services to NMIA, with Air India Express operating four daily domestic flights from Dec 2026 and planned services to Kuwait and existing services to Oman from Jan 2027. Air India Group will progressively transition Air India Express services to Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Doha, Muscat, and Sharjah, to NMIA, with the process expected to be completed by the IATA Northern Summer 2027 season,” said a joint statement by airlines and Adani Airport Holdings Ltd (AAHL) on Sunday.IndiGo said: “As part of its expansion at NMIA, IndiGo will progressively transfer 12 daily international departures from CSMIA to NMIA, representing all the present operations from CSMIA to Bahrain, Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah, Madinah, Kuwait, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Muscat, Dhaka and Jakarta. An additional daily service to Kathmandu will also be introduced, taking IndiGo’s international network at NMIA to 12 destinations between Feb and July 2027.”IndiGo will also transition the required domestic connectivity from CSMIA to NMIA to support these international services, “ensuring seamless onward connections for customers,” said a statement issued by IndiGo and AAHL. “In close collaboration with IndiGo, AAHL has been working to enable the necessary infrastructure at NMIA for delivering a smooth and efficient transfer experience between IndiGo’s International and Domestic services at NMIA. This will mark the next step of IndiGo’s expansion strategy to build NMIA as a long-term international hub,” it added.AI says “this transition is a result of continued collaborative engagement with the airport operator and is aligned with the wider airport transition program for both Indian and international airlines and will support the long-awaited redevelopment of CSMIA Terminal 1. The phased move also supports the development of Mumbai’s dual-airport system while enabling Air India Group to continue serving the market efficiently and preserve the historicity of its existing operating slots at CSMIA.”IndiGo said: “At CSMIA, this capacity transition will also facilitate two additional joint objectives. First, it will create room for IndiGo’s continued international expansion in 2027, enabling the launch of new services across Asia, Africa and Europe using its expanding fleet of A320/321 and A321XLR during 2027, without placing further pressure on a capacity constrained airport. Second, the associated transition of domestic operations will also support IndiGo’s share of the capacity reductions required to enable the redevelopment of CSMIA T1 by 2030. IndiGo and AAHL will continue to work together to ensure that any further adjustments required to IndiGo’s services at CSMIA T1, to enable the redevelopment, will be accommodated in CSMIA T2.”“The phased transition is intended to support a transparent, equitable and proportionate rebalancing of capacity across Mumbai’s dual airport system, taking into account each airline’s presence at CSMIA. This balanced approach will help facilitate an orderly transition for all carriers, minimize operational disruption and provide greater planning certainty for airlines and passengers as NMIA scales up and CSMIA progresses with its redevelopment,” it added.IndiGo will announce final dates for the transition of services to NMIA and introduction of new services to CSMIA after completion of final project coordination and relevant operating approvals are secured.“The phased transition will materially expand connectivity from NMIA and further expand international reach from CSMIA, thereby providing passengers across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region with stronger twin-airport access to broader range of domestic and international travel,” it added.