The upcoming airport at Jewar, scheduled to begin operations from mid-April 2025, is on the verge of finalising international flights to Singapore, Dubai, and Zurich, multiple officials aware of the discussions told Moneycontrol.

"NIAL (Noida International Airport Limited) will start operations from April 17 with flights to over 30 destinations, including 25 domestic flights, three international flights, and two cargo flights," a senior NIAL executive said.

He added that NIAL is in negotiations with both domestic and international airlines to operate regular flights starting April 2025. The international flights being discussed are currently only  for six months from launch.

Notably, Zurich is the location of the airport's concessionaire, Zurich Airport International (Zurich AG). On the domestic front, the airport will link Noida to Mumbai, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Dehradun, and Hubli.

Similarly, another executive said that negotiations are underway for international flights to Munich and Brussels later in the year.

"We are in discussions with some airlines for more international routes. But their approval would depend on bilateral licensing agreements between nations and airlines, and demand for those flights," the second executive said.

Over 80 percent of the work at the NIAL terminal had been completed as of end-January 2025, and the rest is on track for the April launch, the sources added.

"Work on the  terminal building has progressed significantly, and the rest is on apace. Once the building is completed, the installation of 10 aerobridges will commence," said Shailendra Bhatia, Nodal Officer,  NIAL.

He added that 90 percent of the funds for the first phase of the airport's construction have been utilised.

"Rs 9,024 crore has been spent out of the sanctioned budget of Rs 10,056 crore. This includes Rs 4,326 crore allocated by the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government for the acquisition of 1,334 hectares of land, and Rs 5,730 crore earmarked for project development by Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL), a subsidiary of Zurich AG," Bhatia added.

Work on the air traffic control (ATC) tower, including its glass façade and the operational systems mandated by the Airport Authority of India (AAI), has also been completed.

The airport's concessionaire, last month, applied for an aerodrome licence after a successful ‘validation' test flight. In the exercise, an Airbus 320 touched down and took off from the runway in order to assess NIAL's flight readiness. On board were officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the AAI.

Originally scheduled to start operations in September 2024, the airport underwent a shift in timeline following a high-level meeting involving key stakeholders, including NIAL, YIAPL, DGCA, AAI and others.

The first phase of the airport, covering 1,334 hectares in Jewar, will feature a runway and a terminal designed to handle 12 million passengers annually, accommodate 1 lakh flights, and transport 2.5 lakh tonnes of cargo. There are plans to expand the project in four phases to include multiple hubs.

The terminal building, covering 1 lakh square metres, will feature 28 aircraft stands. Additionally, a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) hub will come up on 40 acres, and a multi-modal cargo hub on 80 acres.