Gangtok, Jan. 24 -- Commercial passenger flight services at Sikkims lone airport at Pakyong near Gangtok resumed on Saturday after a gap of about 19 months.

A SpiceJet aircraft with 57 passengers from Delhi landed at the Pakyong airport, as Sikkim Health Minister M.K. Sharma welcomed the travellers. The flight returned with 21 passengers.

Terming it a historic day, Sharma said that airline services would be a lifeline for the Sikkimese people and boost tourism and trade in the mountainous state.

Additional Chief Secretary of Sikkim (tourism and civil aviation), K. Jayakumar, said that resumption of flight operations was possible after several technical interventions.

In a social media post, Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang said...