From correspondents in India, 07:01 PM IST

) RAK Airways, the national airline of Ras al-Khaimah, an emirate of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), started its service from Kozhikode in Kerala Wednesday.

The first flight with 194 passengers landed at the Kozhikode International Airport Wednesday morning.

Kozhikode is the airline's first service point in India. RAK will operate daily flights to this destination from Ras al-Khaimah. The flight will arrive at 9 a.m. at Kozhikode and will leave for Ras al-Khaimah at 10 a.m.

'We will try to promote tourism between the UAE and Kerala, and are considering concessions for tour groups,' said P.V. Valsaraj, country manager for RAK Airways.

'The northern region of Kerala did not get much tourist attention for lack of good air connectivity. Now, this will change,' he added.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)