Flight operations at Mumbai airport to be suspended for 6 hours on October 18

Flight operations at Mumbai airport will remain suspended for six hours on October 18 for runway maintenance work, the private airport operator said on Thursday, which is likely to hit passengers significantly.

Mumbai airport has two intersecting runways, the main runway 9/27 and secondary runway 14/32, which handle around 800 flights per day, making it the second busiest aerodrome after Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport.

The operator, Adani Group, said it has "planned a runway closure on October 18 from 11 am to 5 pm, for repair and maintenance work on both its runways", as part of its annual post-monsoon preventive maintenance exercise.

Adani Group holds 74 per cent stake in the joint venture that runs Mumbai airport.

During the closure period, the facility operator will carry out major work such as runway edge lights for runway 14/32, upgradation of AGL (aeronautical ground lights ), among others, it stated.

CSMIA (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport) said that in cooperation with key stakeholders, it has already rescheduled flights for the runway closure period to ensure smooth completion of the maintenance work.