Mumbai | IndiGo on Saturday announced that it will start flight operations from the newly-constructed Navi Mumbai International Airport from December 25 with domestic air services to 10 cities.

IndiGo also said it plans to expand its operations, progressively from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region's second airport by adding direct routes to more destinations in due course.

Spread across 1,160 hectares, the airport will have one terminal and one runway in the first phase with an annual passenger handling capacity of 20 million. The first phase of the airport has been built at a cost of Rs 19,650 crore.

The facility was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 8 this year.

IndiGo said it will connect the future-ready airport to ten cities across India including Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, North Goa (Mopa), Jaipur, Nagpur, Cochin, and Mangalore, starting December 25.

Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) is designed to complement the existing Mumbai International Airport and cater to the growing demand for air travel from India's financial capital, the airline said.

Strategically located, NMIA is expected to play a pivotal role in enhancing regional connectivity and supporting economic development in western India.

Gurugram-based IndiGo operates over 2,300 daily flights to more than 130 destinations, including 90 domestic airports.

The airline had a fleet size of 409 aircraft, with 362 in operations and 47 on ground, as on November 14, as per aircraft fleet tracking website, Planespotter.net.