Mysore, Jan 15 (DHNS): Scheduled flights resumed operations at Mysore airport after a gap of fourteen months, here on Monday.
A total of 17 people made use of the resumed services, as the SpiceJet plane landed ten minutes ahead of schedule at the airport. Officials at the airport said that the journey from Bangalore to Mysore, with 85 nautical miles, was completed in 23 minutes.
Vice-president of SpiceJet, Kamal Indrani was also a passenger in the inaugural flight of SpiceJet to Mysore airport.
Passengers were treated to a traditional welcome with ‘Ellu-Bella’ being served as part of Sankranthi celebrations.
The total number of passengers who had booked for departure from the airport was 28. The departure was at 1.30 pm.
The plane, Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft, carried passengers from Bangalore to the city. In the return flight, the plane will carry passengers back to Bangalore, from where passengers travelling to other cities will be accommodated in different aeroplanes, while the plane will proceed to Chennai.
Director of Mysore Airport, C N Manjunath speaking to the press after the landing of a first scheduled flight in over 14 months said that talks were in progress to have daily flights from the airport. He was hopeful that the Directorate of Civil Aviation might permit regular flights to operate from the centre as early as March.
Following the re-launch of services, security for the airport was strengthened with a total of 40 personnel deputed for duty at the airport. One inspector, four sub-inspectors, 35 constables with ten women staff will monitor the security at the airport. Security staff will look into the security of eight kilometres of roads along the perimeter of the airport, along with managing security at the Air Traffic Control towers.
The airport, which had lost its sheen following the suspension of scheduled services was revamped. A ticket booking centre of SpiceJet was also launched, from where passengers can book tickets in advance. The price of tickets, booked in advance, is Rs 2825 for Bangalore, Rs 2825 to Chennai, Rs 3014 to Mumbai and Rs 8303 to Delhi.