Costing ₹423 crore and spanning 51,595 square metres, Pune Airport's New Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March this year. However, its operational launch was delayed due to insufficient Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel. Minister of State (MoS) for Civil Aviation and Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol met Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently and secured approval for an additional 222 CISF personnel to facilitate the commencement of operations. Now, the terminal is all set to open tomorrow (Sunday, July 14).
Two airlines, Air India and Air India Express, will start their services from the new terminal tomorrow. Air India Flight AI–858 (Pune–Delhi) and Air India Express Flight I5 320 (Pune–Bhubaneswar) will be the first flights to depart from the airport, with Mohol felicitating the first passenger by handing him/her the boarding pass. Other airlines will begin operations in a phased manner. "We aim to complete the shifting by August 5," stated Pune Airport Director Santosh Dhoke.
The new terminal has a passenger handling capacity of nine million passengers per annum and a peak hour capacity of 3,000 passengers, a significant improvement over the existing terminal's capacity of 7.7 million per annum and a peak hour capacity of 2,400 passengers.
Meanwhile, traffic will be directed from the new building towards two exit points – the newly constructed Vimannagar Road and Symbiosis/Lohegaon Road. Additionally, entry for departure and arrival will be the same for passengers of flights operating from the existing terminal building.
Earlier on Friday, Mohol inspected the preparations at the new terminal building ahead of its opening. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, "Inspected the preparations at Pune Int'l Airport’s new terminal building with Airport Director Santosh Dhoke & other officials. After completing all technicalities, the terminal is all set to be functional from this Sunday, 1 pm onwards." "Well-equipped with cutting-edge technologies & advanced facilities, the terminal also offers a Puneri experience through creative aesthetics showcasing Pune’s rich cultural heritage. Designed to accommodate future city developments, the terminal has the capacity to serve 90 lakh passengers annually," he added.
