Gujarat: First regional flight connecting Surat, Bhavnagar takes off

The first regional flight in Gujarat connecting Surat and Bhavnagar took off on Saturday.

After inaugurating the service in Surat, which is run by Ventura Air Connect Private Ltd, Gujarat minister Saurabh Patel said, "It is the first regional air connectivity in the state and the proposed destinations to be covered are Palitana, Ambaji, Dwarka, Morbi, Ankleshwar, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar, Rajkot and Kandla."

"Our (Gujarat government's) golden goal is to develop new airports at Ambaji, Dwarka, Palitana and Ankleshwar," the Gujarat aviation minister added.

Regional connectivity is the centrepiece of the new civil aviation policy recently unveiled by the Centre.

"Gujarat government's vision is to enable growth of the aviation industry, oversee and promote safety in the sector, provide air navigation services and develop Gujarat as a centre of excellence for aviation knowledge and human resource development," Patel added.

According to the minister, the state government's mission is to create state-of-the-art civil infrastructure for the aviation sector.