The inaugural flight connecting Delhi and Ayodhya will take off on December 30, weeks before the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple, Air India has announced. The commencement of daily services on the route will take place from January 16, 2024.

The Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram International Airport at Ayodhya has an extended runway suitable for A-321/B-737 type aircraft operations. The airport will be inaugurated before the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

Air India Express issued a release on Wednesday where it said that the inaugural flight IX 2789 on December 30 is scheduled to depart from Delhi at 1100 hours and land in Ayodhya at 1220 hours.

Meanwhile, the IX 1769 will be departing from from Ayodhya to Delhi at 1250 hours, arriving at the national capital at 1410 hours. The transportation services are expected to benefit tourists heading to the Ram Mandir after the consecration ceremony.

“Air India Express is excited to commence operations from Ayodhya right after the airport opens. This underlines our commitment to enhancing connectivity from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities across the country,” the airline’s Managing Director Aloke Singh said.

Air India Express, which is a subsidiary of the Tata-owned airline, operates more than 300 flights daily and has a fleet of 59 aircrafts.

Not just Air India Express, but IndiGo has also said last week that it will operate the inaugural flight from the national capital to Ayodhya airport on December 30 and the commercial services will commence from January 6.

Ram Mandir consecration ceremony

The first phase of the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya began in 2020 during the Covid lockdown, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid down the foundation stone of the temple.

Since the Bhoomi Pujan of the temple on August 5, 2020, the overall construction of the temple has taken 3.5 years. In January of 2023, two 60 million-years-old Shaligram rocks were sent from Nepal to Ayodhya to carve out the statue of Lord Ram in the sanctum sanctorum.

Over 1200 invitations have been sent out for the consecration ceremony of the temple on January 22, to be attended by PM Modi, UP CM Yogi Adityanath and other notable personalities.

With inputs from PTI