Moving a step closer to operationalisation, Noida International Airport has initiated ‘terminal trials,’ which is a critical phase that signals the start of final preparations before the airport becomes fully functional, industry sources said.
According to sources, the full-fledged ‘terminal trials’ focus on testing passenger processes, systems integration, and coordination among various airport partners.
Notably, the programme known as the ‘Operational Readiness Activation & Transition’ (ORAT) will continue until the commissioning, ensuring that all components of the airport ecosystem are “thoroughly tested and ready for real-time operations.”
When contacted, authorities at NIA confirmed the development.
As per NIA officials, the scope of ORAT at the greenfield airport is “comprehensive” and structured phase-wise.
The official cited that ORAT spans preparedness of infrastructure, operational systems, and personnel, including stakeholders such as airlines, ground handling agencies, commercial concessionaires, and other key service providers.
Besides infrastructure readiness, the programme also aims to foster seamless coordination across all airport functions.
Furthermore, the overarching objective of the ORAT process is to enable a smooth and safe transition from the construction phase to full-scale operations, with safety, efficiency, and passenger experience remaining at the core.
“The phase-wise ORAT process began early in the project lifecycle with the formulation of operational concepts, manuals, and procedures,” an NIA official said.
In addition, familiarisation and training activities, as well as initial trials at the control centre, were initiated towards the end of 2024.
Airside operations
“Physical ORAT trials for airside operations commenced in early 2025. Additionally, full-fledged terminal trials have been ongoing.”
In May 2025, sources said, that India’s civil aviation safety watchdog commenced inspection of NIA for grant of regulatory clearance required to start commercial flight operations.
Initially, only domestic operations might start, followed by international flights. Earlier, an NIA official had said that the airport continues to progress steadily towards operational readiness.
At present, the Air Control Tower (ATC) has become operational.
The Noida International Airport is expected to handle around 5 million passengers in its maiden year of commercial operation.
In its first phase of development, the airport, with one runway and one terminal, will have a capacity to handle traffic of 12 million passengers annually.
After the completion of the fourth phase, the airport will have the capacity to manage 70 million passengers per year.
However, the airport had missed its completion deadline two times, once scheduled at the end of 2024 and the other one in April 2025, due to sourcing constraints of materials like structural steel and roofing work.
In terms of connectivity, airline major IndiGo is expected to be the first passenger carrier to start services from the airport. The airline had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NIA.
Many foreign carriers have also shown interest in starting operations at the airport once it gets operational.
