Václav Havel Airport Prague now has direct service to Larnaca, Cyprus, in time for the summer holidays. Cyprus Airways launched its inaugural Larnaca to Prague flight June 1.

The flight from Larnaca left at 11 am local time and arrived at Václav Havel Airport at approximately 1:40 pm, where it was welcomed with a festive water gate from the airport fire brigade. Firefighters made an arc of water over the arriving plane once it came to a standstill.

Airport operator Letiště Praha welcomed the first passenger in the gate, where a ribbon was cut.

Cyprus Airways will operate flights between Larnaca and Prague every Friday. Service will increase July 2 to Mondays and Fridays.

Round-trip ticket prices from Prague to Larnaca start at € 155 including all taxes and fees.

Flights from Larnaca will leave Cyprus at 11 am local time and arrive in Prague at 1:35 pm. Flights from Prague will leave at 2:35 pm and arrive at 6:50 pm local time.

Both flights will operate on an Airbus A319 aircraft with a capacity of 144 passengers. The service is scheduled to last until Oct. 28.

Cyprus Airways is based at the Larnaca International Airport. The carrier’s name is old, but the current incarnation is relatively new.

In July 2016, Cyprus-based Charlie Airlines agreed with the Ministry of Finance of Cyprus to take over the name and trademarks of Cyprus Airlines, after the previous operator went out of business. It had operated from 1947 to 2015 under different management.

The new company’s long-term goal is to contribute to in the increase of tourism in Cyprus, while at the same time broadening the horizon for local travelers, according to the carrier’s website.

Larnaca International Airport is the largest of the country’s two commercial airports. The other is Paphos International Airport on the island’s southwestern coast.

Larnaca is the third-largest city in the country, after Nicosia and Limassol, with a metro population of 144,200 in 2015. It is built on the ruins of ancient Citium, which was the birthplace of Stoic philosopher Zeno.

Airport operator Letiště Praha has been trying to attract more airlines and add more destinations. The new summer flight schedule at Václav Havel Airport Prague, which started March 25 and runs until the end of October, has some 67 carriers with scheduled service to 157 locations.

Václav Havel Airport Prague had a record year in 2017. It handled a total of 15,415,001 passengers, an increase of 17.9 percent compared to 2016. On average, 42,233 passengers per day passed through Prague’s international airport last year.

Václav Havel Airport Prague opened April 5, 1937, as Prague Ruzyně Airport. Right after former president Václav Havel’s death on Dec. 18, 2011, an online petition organized by Slovak film director Fero Fenič asked the government and the Parliament to rename Prague Ruzyně Airport to Václav Havel International Airport. This name change took place Oct. 5, 2012, on what would have been Havel’s 76th birthday.