Mumbai may require a third airport as passenger demand in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) continues to outpace existing and planned capacity, according to B V J K Sharma, CEO of Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA). Speaking at the Airport 360 Expo held in Mumbai, Sharma said “There is still room for a third airport,” flagging a widening gap between demand and infrastructure in one of India’s busiest aviation markets.
Capacity Gap
The MMR is estimated to generate passenger demand of around 180 million, while capacity from the two airports, the NMIA and the existing CSMIA airport is expected to reach about 150 million at full utilisation. NMIA alone is being developed with a planned capacity of 90 million passengers, complementing the existing airport’s roughly 60 million.
The capacity stress comes amid strong growth in India’s aviation market. According to Sharma, passenger traffic reached about 412 million in 2025, nearly 30% higher than pre-Covid levels, and is projected to cross 500 million before 2030, with long-term estimates of 1 billion passengers by 2047. “Our growth would be rapid,” Sharma said, underscoring the pace at which demand is rising across the country.
Mumbai 3.0
Against this backdrop, NMIA is emerging as a critical infrastructure project, positioned at the centre of the proposed “Mumbai 3.0” development corridor. The airport is part of an estimated Rs 80,000 crore investment pipeline, with the broader ecosystem spanning logistics, real estate and infrastructure potentially attracting up to Rs 4 lakh crore in investments. “I can foresee a sea change happening in the next 10 years, especially in and around Navi Mumbai,” Sharma said, pointing to the transformative impact of airport-led development.
As traffic continues to rise sharply, Sharma’s remarks signal that long-term planning for additional capacity in Mumbai may need to begin sooner rather than at a later stage, thus reinforcing the role of airports as critical enablers of economic growth for every major city.