First Flights Start At Goa Mopa Airport

Commercial operations have commenced at New Goa Airport (GOX), India’s newest greenfield airport which is spread across 2,132 acres and will initially be capable of serving 4.4 million passengers per year.

The facility, also known as Goa Mopa and North Goa, is the state of Goa’s second international airport and was inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December. Its first flight saw IndiGo touch down from Hyderabad (HYD) on the morning of Jan. 5.

Three carriers have already confirmed they will serve the airport, with LCC IndiGo set to be operating about 13,800 weekly departure seats and 88 flights by the end of January, data provided by OAG shows.

During the week commencing Jan. 30, IndiGo intends to fly to eight destinations—Ahmedabad (AMD), Bengaluru (BLR), Chennai (MAA), Delhi (DEL), Hyderabad, Jaipur (JAI), Mumbai (BOM) and Pune (PNQ).

“It’s momentous for us at IndiGo to have such a massive opening and it speaks to our ambition and endeavor to provide connectivity, ease of accessibility and ever more options for our customers to one of the most visited tourist destinations of the country,” IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said.

Go First, which also launched operations from GOX on Jan. 5, will serve six domestic points, going head-to-head with IndiGo in the Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Mumbai markets, as well as flying to Chandigarh (IXC) and Nagpur (NAG). Go First will offer about 7,600 departure seats across 41 weekly flights by late January.

The third operator at GOX will be Akasa Air. The startup will serve three destinations, operating to both Bengaluru and Mumbai from Jan. 11 and Hyderabad from Jan. 25. Each route will be 2X-daily, with Bengaluru rising to 3X-daily from Feb. 1.

Goa Mopa is located in North Goa, known for its beaches, forts and nightlife. Tourist attractions include the Basilica of Bom Jesus, Aguada Fort, Immaculate Conception Church, Chapora Fort, Sinquerim Beach and Anjuna Beach.

Goa Dabolim International (GOI) will continue to operate following the launch of Goa Mopa. IndiGo and Go First will serve both airports.

Goa Mapa caters to 4.4 million passengers in the first phase increasing to 13.1 million by the end of the fourth phase. It is being developed by Indian conglomerate GMR Group, which has a 40-year concession period with a possible 20-year extension through a bid process.