BHUBANESWAR: A direct flight between Jharsuguda and Mumbai will start operating for the first time from Veer Surendra Sai Airport (VSSA) on January 12.
Another direct flight will start its operations between Jharsuguda and Bengaluru on the same day. The two flights will be operated by SpiceJet four days a week.
VSS Director Kishore Kumar Senapati said there was a huge demand for starting flight operations from the city to Mumbai and Bengaluru.
"Earlier, a flight was operating from Jharsuguda to Bengaluru via Bhubaneswar. There is a huge demand among the travelers and the direct flight is expected to receive a good response," he added.
The flight from Mumbai will reach Jharsuguda on Tuesday at 12.30 pm and depart for Bengaluru at 1 pm. A flight from Bengaluru will arrive at Jharsuguda at 5.40 pm and leave for Mumbai at 6.10 pm on the same day.
The flights from Mumbai will reach VSS at 11.10 am on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and leave for Bengaluru at 11.40 am. Similarly, flights from Bengaluru will reach VSS at 4.40 pm and leave for Mumbai at 5.10 pm on these three days.
Ministry of Civil Aviation Joint Secretary Usha Padhee appreciated SpiceJet for starting operations from Jharsuguda to Mumbai and Bengaluru.
"This is expected to boost the economy of western Odisha and will it help in fulfilling the aspirations of the people in the region," said Padhee.
The VSS Airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 22, 2018.
Six scheduled flights are currently operating regularly from VSSA. Two flights between VSS and Kolkata and one flight each from Jharsuguda to Bhubaneswar, Delhi, Hyderabad and Raipur are operating daily.