Ayodhya: On a historic day, the first flight took off from Delhi around two hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the dazzling new Maharishi Valmiki International Airport.
As the Indigo flight landed at Ayodhya late on a Saturday winter afternoon, passengers clad in saffron outfits and turbans, some carrying flags and manuscripts, deboarded the plane and walked down the ramp.
Watch a video posted on X by ANI:
#WATCH | Ayodhya, UP: The first flight that took off from Delhi for the newly constructed Maharishi Valmiki International Airport, landed at Ayodhya Airport; passengers deboard the plane. pic.twitter.com/Va1vZR3N6x
— ANI (@ANI) December 30, 2023
“This place is holy and sacred. This is Lord Ram’s place, there is no other place which is as holy as this… those who have taken birth here are very lucky… I can’t express my happiness,” Baskar Shukla, one of the lucky passengers who flew on the inaugural flight from Delhi, told ANI.
Earlier, captain Ashutosh Shekhar — who was in charge of the IndiGo flight — welcomed passengers on board the first flight from Delhi to Ayodhya.
#WATCH | IndiGo pilot captain Ashutosh Shekhar welcomes passengers as the first flight takes off from Delhi for the newly constructed Maharishi Valmiki International Airport, Ayodhya Dham, in Ayodhya, UP. pic.twitter.com/rWkLSUcPVF
— ANI (@ANI) December 30, 2023
Indigo asides, Air India Express will also start daily services from Ayodhya to Bengaluru, Delhi and Kolkata.
It was exactly a week ago that the first test was conducted at Ayodhya airport by an Indian Air Force plane.
