Akasa Air suspends Jewar, Navi Mumbai flights; services to resume from Oct 1

Akasa Air has temporarily suspended flight operations to and from the newly opened Noida International Airport at Jewar and Navi Mumbai International Airport, less than a few months after commencing services from the two greenfield airports. The airline said the suspension was part of a routine network and schedule optimisation exercise and that flights on both routes would resume from October 1, 2026.

"At Akasa Air, we continuously optimise our network and schedules based on factors such as customer demand, seasonality, operational efficiencies, and aircraft deployment. As part of this ongoing process, some routes and flight schedules may be adjusted from time to time. The flights connecting Noida International Airport and Navi Mumbai International Airport will resume starting October 1, 2026," an Akasa Air spokesperson said.

The move comes at a time when airlines are reassessing capacity deployment across newly launched airports, where passenger demand is yet to stabilise.

Noida International Airport at Jewar, which was inaugurated in May this year, is India's newest greenfield airport and was developed to ease congestion at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport while catering to the fast-growing National Capital Region. Navi Mumbai International Airport, inaugurated in June, is expected to eventually share traffic with Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport and significantly enhance aviation capacity in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

Industry sources said airlines operating from the two airports have been struggling to attract adequate passenger traffic, prompting them to rationalise flight schedules. They said that inadequate last-mile connectivity and supporting infrastructure around the airports have also impacted passenger preference, particularly as both airports continue to scale up operations.

According to sources, carriers are witnessing lower-than-expected passenger loads on several sectors from the two airports. While airlines remain committed to expanding operations over the long term, they are currently calibrating capacity to match demand and improve aircraft utilisation.

Akasa Air had earlier announced flights from the two airports as part of its network expansion strategy. The temporary suspension underscores the operational challenges airlines face in the initial months of operations at new airports, where traffic typically takes time to build despite modern infrastructure and significant long-term growth potential.