The MOPA Airport in Goa has received the green signal from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to start operations with its commercial flights. The authorities issued this license recently for the second airport in Goa just ahead of the inaugurations. The Prime Minister is likely to attend the inauguration of this greenfield airport. As a part of the testing mechanism of the navigation system, an IndiGo A-320 aircraft from Mumbai has already flown to the Airport.

Currently, Goa has only one airport which is currently serving the adjoining areas. However, with the number of commercial flight passengers increasing, the city felt the necessity of a second airport. With several places in North Goa like Dodamarg and Sasoli coming to the spotlight of real estate investors, people have been purchasing new properties in these places as well. At the same time, the Konkan belt is located close to this area, and this is likely to boost tourism. This project is being developed by GMR Goa International Airport Limited. This is a subsidiary of GMR Airports Limited. They are developing this airport at MOPA under a public-private partnership model, considering transfer, operation, financing, building, and design basis.

The authorities are working on this airport in four phases. Once the first phase is inaugurated, the airport will be equipped to handle an annual load of 4.4 million passengers. By the time the developers complete the fifth phase, this figure is likely to surge to 13.1 million.

The commencement of flights from the new airport in Goa is a positive development for the real estate industry. Property prices had already been soaring in areas close to North Goa. With the transportation infrastructure strengthening in this part of the city, the property rates would rise further. Currently, the only operational airport in Goa is located at Dabolim. This airport currently handles 70 flights only, which land at the airport. Besides, there are some limitations of this airport. No flights are permitted to land at this airport between 9 am to 2 pm.

Once the MOPA airport becomes operational, as many as 150 flights would be able to land at Goa. Currently, the country has 131 operational airports. North Goa properties are likely to become expensive once the new airport becomes operational.