First direct international flight takes off from Bhubaneswar airport

Bhubaneswar: The first direct flight to an international destination took off from Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar today marking the beginning of a new era in civil aviation in this part of the world.

The Air Asia flight was scheduled to depart from Bhubaneswar at 11:55PM to Kuala Lumpur.  In the preliminary phase, the flight will operate 4 times a week on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

As a part of the promotional strategy and to attract flyers, the first flight arrived here with a group of journalists from Malaysia. A postage stamp to commemorate the occasion was also released.

Earlier during the day, the High Commissioner of Malaysia to India, Datuk Hidayat Abdul Hamid met the CM Naveen Patnaik and held bilateral discussions on tourism, trade and education.

“We will have more businessmen come here and they will identify the specific areas. We are also interested in IT as Odisha is developing smart cities,” said Hamid.

“It is a very good opportunity and occasion for the state of Odisha also. It is a matter of great pride for the State. It is a very good move for the benefit of the tourism of the State,” said AirAsia’s regional manager, Salim Choudhary.