SAMBALPUR/ROURKELA:A nine-seater aircraft of Air Odisha Aviation Private Limited on Friday conducted flight test from Rourkela aerodrome of the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) to Jamadarpali Airstrip situated on the outskirts of Sambalpur.
Sources said the flight test was aimed at exploring commercial viability on the route and assess route safety.
Piloted by Captain Arvind Singh, the aircraft, Grand Cessna Caravan 208 B, flew from Bhubaneswar to Sambalpur via Rourkela accompanied by Chief Flight Operation Inspector Subodh Gangwani and Deputy Director (Airworthiness) KK Majumdar of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Director of Air Odisha Trideep Rout.
Rout said the DGCA has already given green signal for the flight and they are planning to launch commercial flight between Rourkela and Bhubanesar covering Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and Jeypore by the end of December.
With the flight proving successful, the DGCA will now issue licence after which the air service can take off, he added.
Rout said fare ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 would be charged from Sambalpur to Bhubaneswar and the flight will take about an hour.
The flight service will be available for six days in a week while there will be no flight on Sundays, he added.