Air Serbia flies to US after 24-year hiatus

An Air Serbia plane took off from Belgrade for New York on June 23 -- the company's first direct flight to the United States after a 24-year interruption which began during the Balkan conflicts.

The direct connection "will boost our economic growth and bring our country closer to the United States and American people", said Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic at the launch, also attended by US ambassador Kyle Scott.

Departing in the morning after a 40-minute delay, the flight was to due to reach New York's JFK airport in ten hours. The service is set to run five times a week.

In 1992 JAT Airways -- the Yugoslav predecessor of Air Serbia -- stopped its direct flights to the United States after international sanctions were slapped on the country over Belgrade's role in the bloody conflicts surrounding the break-up of the former Yugoslavia.

Air Serbia is now the only regional airline offering direct flights to the United States, and a company official said 15,000 tickets have already been sold, according to state-run media.