News / IATA accuses Adani of 'capacity gaming' over Mumbai freighter ban

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Adani Group-managed Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) is facing pushback from industry groups over a recent decision to suspend freighter operations for infrastructure upgrades.

MIAL, one of the busiest cargo gateways in India, last week told cargo stakeholders no freighter slots would be available from 16 August.

Calling the move unilateral and capricious, IATA has now called on MIAL and related Indian authorities to rescind the suspension plan, as it ought to have had substantive prior stakeholder engagement to mitigate the potential impact of capacity cuts.

“IATA is surprised and deeply disappointed that Mumbai International has informed airlines of the unilateral cessation of cargo freighter flights, and a seemingly permanent withdrawal of historic slots beginning next season,” said John Middleton, IATA’s head for worldwide airport slots.

“The discriminatory impact on cargo operations, and on certain operators, also raises the spectre of reciprocal impact under bilateral air services agreements.”

IATA also claimed the implementation plan was not consistent with guidelines laid down by the Worldwide Airport Slot Board (WASB), due to the short three-months’ notice.

“It is key that MIAL aligns with the WASB’s guidance,” Mr Middleton noted.  “We previously recommended to MIAL on how to approach this situation, which unfortunately was not heeded.”

IATA also complained that it continued to be unclear how MIAL would manage the capacity pull and mitigate the overall supply chain impact, creating a cloud of uncertainty in the market. And it questioned whether the freighter suspension at Mumbai had underlying business interests for Adani.

“We hope Adani Airports, as the operator of the two-airport system in Mumbai, is not using this situation to pressure airlines to move their operations to their upcoming Navi Mumbai Airport (NMIA),” Mr Middleton said.

“We fear, however, that this is an example of airport “capacity gaming”, which will harm aviation throughout India and beyond,” he added.

Airlines and freight forwarders using MIAL have, in general, been unhappy about the imminent disruption to freighter services out of Mumbai amid improving trade prospects.

Mumbai-based cargo community system industry leader Kale Logistics Solutions, however, believes a shift of cargo operations to the new air cargo terminal  at NMIA would be “a boon for the industry”, despite some inevitable “teething troubles”.

“Mumbai Airport, being located in the heart of the city, is constrained by urban congestion, especially with the movement of trucks restricted within the city limits,” Kale co-founder and director Vineet Malhotra told The Loadstar. “As stakeholders begin to experience the improved efficiency and connectivity NMIA offers, the value of this shift will become increasingly clear.”

Adani uses Kale-developed solutions to digitise air cargo operations across its Indian airport network.

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