GMR Airports Limited announced that its Indian subsidiary, GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport Limited (GVIAL), commenced commercial operations at the Greenfield Bhogapuram International Airport, officially named the Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport, effective August 17, 2026. The commencement follows the airport’s inauguration by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on August 1, 2026. Day one operations featured multiple milestone domestic and international flights connecting Visakhapatnam to major hubs like Hyderabad, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore, alongside a planned total of 52 air traffic movements.

The newly operational airport has been designed with an initial capacity to handle 6 million passengers annually, featuring a 3,800-metre Code 4E runway capable of accommodating wide-body aircraft. The master plan incorporates phased expansions to ultimately scale capacity beyond 40 million passengers per annum, significantly reinforcing North Andhra Pradesh as a prominent aviation and logistics hub on India’s eastern seaboard. Senior government officials, including the Minister for Civil Aviation Shri Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, attended the launch to commemorate the historic milestone alongside airline partners and airport leadership.

GMR Airports Limited functions as a leading global airport platform entity with extensive expertise in designing, building, and operating sustainable airports under the brand name “GMR AERO”. In recent strategic developments through 2025, the company expanded its footprint by building a 66.93% majority stake in Delhi Duty Free via a multi-million-dollar acquisition and further strengthened its operational capacities across its global and domestic portfolio. The platform operates several major aviation gateways globally and domestically—including Delhi, Hyderabad, Goa, and Nagpur—and serves over 121 million passengers annually.

During the latest financial results announced for Q4 FY2025-26, GMR Airports reported total revenues of ₹4,042.90 Crores, reflecting a slight 1.0% decrease quarter-on-quarter but a solid 35.8% increase year-on-year compared to ₹2,976.76 Crores in Q4 FY25. Profit after tax surged significantly to ₹400.49 Crores, demonstrating a 130.2% increase compared to the previous quarter. The company attracts prominent institutional backing, with major global investors and stakeholders such as Groupe ADP (holding a significant co-promoter stake), GQG Partners, and BlackRock maintaining substantial investments in the group.