First Commercial Flight Lands in Arunachal Pradesh

In the third week of May this year, Arunachal Pradesh has been put on the aviation map of the country with the state’s first commercial flight, carrying Chief Minister Pema Khandu and 24 other passengers, landing at Pasighat in the North-East state’s East Siang district, 305 kilometres from the state capital Itanagar. A 42-seater ATR aircraft of Alliance Air touched down at Pasighat at 2.15 pm after a 1.5 hour long flight from Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi Airport in Guwahati. The airport at Pasighat is at an Advanced Landing Ground meant to support operations of military aircraft and small civil aircraft . “It is history in the making. With this commercial flight, new vistas of economic development have opened up in the region. Besides, the flight services will also open up ample opportunities for the tourism industry,” the Chief Minister said after getting out of the plane at Pasighat. “Now, with the launch of the commercial flight, tourists from other states and foreign countries will be able to visit the picturesque locales of the state,” he said. Another airport at Tezu in Lohit district, 306 km from Itanagar, will be ready for flight operations soon, the Chief Minister said. The border state has some 120 helipads and ten Advanced Landing Grounds built for defence as well as civil operations.