What are the unique Swiss features the Noida airport will have?
The airport will be a confluence of Swiss efficiency and Indian hospitality. Being a digital airport, Noida International Airport (NIA) will provide a seamless and contactless flow by means of technologies such as indoor geo-location, identity management, flow management, data mining, and internet of things.
Beyond passenger traffic, what kind of transformation will the Noida airport bring about?
Noida Airport will connect the greater Delhi area and western Uttar Pradesh with other cities in India and the world. The airport will enhance connectivity for western UP and add capacity for air travel to/from Delhi NCR, while acting as a catalyst for infrastructure development, economic growth, and employment opportunities in the region. It is set to be the logistics gateway of northern India and will help establish Uttar Pradesh on the global logistics map.
With western UP comparatively underdeveloped, the business for the new airport will take a long time to materialise. Also it can only grow by cannibalising the Delhi airport.
NIA will be a convenient alternative to Delhi airport, and will save time for travellers in the region. Planned at a strategic location, NIA will add airport capacity to the region and complement the existing aviation infrastructure catering to the people of Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Agra, Faridabad, and neighbouring areas.
The post-Covid revival of the Indian aviation sector has been phenomenal and will require more aviation infrastructure to serve the growing demand.
Additionally, NIA will become a key air cargo gateway for north India. The airport will develop an ecosystem that consists of state-of-the-art infrastructure and product offerings supported by best-in-class procedures that incorporate Swiss efficiency, simplicity, and quality. The integrated multi-modal cargo hub at NIA will play a crucial role in establishing the state of Uttar Pradesh as the logistics gateway for north India, with quick, convenient connectivity to and from manufacturing hubs.
What kind of revenues do you expect in the first five years? What would be the mix―passengers, retail, cargo?
Broadly, we will have airlines, hotels, cargo, and other such commercial partners. We recently awarded Roseate Hotels and Resorts the concession to build a 220-room property while Air India SATS will develop a multi-modal cargo hub at the airport. We are identifying other strong and experienced partners to operate key services such as retail, food and beverage, and other non-aeronautical services which will be key for our revenue streams.
How significant would cargo mix be to the new airport’s vision? What is the status of the proposed high-speed rail link to central Delhi?
The cargo and logistics infrastructure and ecosystem will cater to a differentiated catchment and several upcoming industrial clusters in NCR and Uttar Pradesh, creating a cargo gateway for northern India. Spanning 80 acres, it will comprise an integrated cargo terminal combined with an integrated warehousing and logistics zone. This unique logistics zone will offer a transshipment centre, as well as a warehouse zone for freight forwarders and integrators. It will also provide for transportation facilities to support road-to-road, road-to-air, and air-to-road movements.
While we are working to develop the airport, the government’s endeavour is to establish easy connectivity [from Delhi] to the airport.