Navi Mumbai Airport to lead Rs 4.2 lakh crore national aviation expansion by 2029
A report released by Brickwork Ratings revealed that India's airport infrastructure sector is projected to attract investments of nearly Rs 4.2 lakh crore by 2029, with the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport in Navi Mumbai set to ease congestion at Mumbai's existing airport. The massive national investment is expected to fund capacity expansion and the construction of new greenfield airports to accommodate an additional 500 million to 600 million passengers.
According to the rating agency, projects already announced and under implementation account for approximately Rs 3.7 lakh crore of the total projected investment. An additional Rs 50,000 crore worth of airport projects are expected to be commissioned by 2029. More than 65 airport projects have been announced up to FY26.
The expansion is expected to bring significant relief to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The Navi Mumbai International Airport is designed to act as a crucial second airport to decongest the saturated Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. Alongside the Jewar airport near Delhi, the Navi Mumbai project is expected to anchor the next phase of the country's aviation growth.
Brickwork Ratings projected domestic passenger traffic to grow by 8% to 10%, propelled by rising disposable incomes, improved regional connectivity under the UDAN scheme, and growing demand from Tier-II and Tier-III cities. However, the agency noted that international traffic may remain subdued in the near term due to geopolitical tensions in West Asia, which accounts for 38% to 40% of India's international passenger traffic.
Niraj Rathi, Senior Director-Ratings at Brickwork Ratings, stated that while the first half of FY27 is likely to remain muted, demand is expected to recover sharply during the second half of the fiscal year as airlines introduce winter schedules and newly commissioned airports scale up operations.
Despite the heavy capital expenditure, the agency maintained a stable credit outlook for the airport infrastructure sector. Operating margins are estimated to rise from 44.4% in FY25 to 53.8% in FY26, and reach 54.5% in FY27. This improvement is expected to be driven by higher-margin non-aeronautical revenues from retail concessions, food courts, and commercial leasing at new terminals.
The report also highlighted improvements in the financial health of airport operators, with sector debt-equity ratios expected to decrease from 3.8 in FY25 to 2.7 by FY27 as stronger cash flows enable the repayment of construction loans. However, the sector continues to face risks of consolidated net losses due to high depreciation, interest costs, and volatile aviation turbine fuel prices, which constitute about 40% of airline operating costs.
