PHNOM PENH: Lao Airlines, the national airline of Laos, restarted on Tuesday its direct flights between Vientiane and Phnom Penh, offering a three-times-a-week service, scheduled every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

The first Lao Airline's flight with 116 passengers on board arrived at Phnom Penh International Airport on Mar. 19 and was warmly greeted in a ceremony hosted by H.E. Hul Seila, Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Tourism, while passengers on board received gifts of flowers and Khmer scarfs (Krama).

Operated by Air Bus320 or ATR 72, the flight is scheduled to depart Vientiane at 8.35 am and land in Phnom Penh at 9.50 am.

The resumption of the Vientiane-Phnom Penh route will contribute to tourism attraction to the two countries, said H.E. Sin Chansereyvutha, Under Secretary of State at the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation.

“The resumption of Lao Airlines flights is a positive sign for the travel of tourists, businessmen, contributing to enhanceing the relationship between the people of the two countries,” he said.

In 2023, Laos was the fourth largest source of foreign tourists for Cambodia with more than 372,285 visitors, an increase of 302 percent from 92,609 in 2022, a report from the Ministry of Tourism showed.