New Delhi: India’s first offshore airport has moved one step closer to the drawing board, with Maharashtra approving the preparation of a Detailed Project
Report for the proposed project near Kore beach in Palghar district. The airport is being planned as the third international airport for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
The project is still at the planning stage, so flights are not taking off tomorrow. But the idea itself is big. An airport built near the coast, linked to a sea link, a bullet train station, an expressway and a major port, sounds like the kind of infra story that gets people talking in trains, offices and property circles.
What is an offshore airport?
An offshore airport is built on reclaimed land or on marine structures near the sea. Cities with less open land often look at this model for large aviation hubs.
Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea have used similar ideas in the past. For India, the proposed Palghar airport could become the first such project.
The site is planned near Kore beach in Palghar district, which falls in Maharashtra’s Konkan region. The Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation is overseeing the proposal.
How big will Palghar airport be?
The proposed airport is planned with two parallel runways. Its design capacity is expected to be huge.
| Detail | Proposed plan |
|---|---|
| Location | Near Kore beach, Palghar |
| Region | Mumbai Metropolitan Region |
| Runways | Two parallel runways |
| Passenger capacity | Up to 90 million passengers a year |
| Cargo capacity | About 3 million metric tonnes a year |
| Status | DPR preparation approved |
Why Palghar airport matters
Mumbai already has Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. Navi Mumbai International Airport is another big project in the region. The Palghar offshore airport is being seen as the next major aviation hub.
It is planned with links to the Uttan-Virar Sea Link, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train station and the Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway. The project is linked with the upcoming Vadhavan Port for cargo and logistics movement.
Speaking on the growth corridor, Shravan Nawany, Director of Nawany Group, said, “Developers who have worked this corridor for decades will tell you the infrastructure was always coming. The question was never whether. It was when, and at what scale.”
He added, “When CIDCO, MMRDA, and the state government arrive at the same corridor without coordinating their announcements, it is not a strategy. It is evidence.”
Palghar offshore Airport: Cost and timeline
Project cost estimates vary. Some references put it at around ₹45,000 crore, while others mention around ₹76,220 crore.
Construction is expected to begin in 2026. Operations may start in the early 2030s, if clearances, funding and construction move as planned.
