Key West Mayor Craig Cates is boarding a chartered aircraft at the Key West International Airport on December 30, 2013, that flew to Havana, Cuba. (Photo: AP)

(VOVworld) - The first commercial passenger flight to leave the US for Cuba in more than 50 years took off from Key West international airport in Florida and landed in Havana Monday. It is the result of several years of efforts to reunite the two countries and to promote culture, tourism, and to increase understanding between the US and Cuba.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection gave the final approval for the Cessna Conquest II aircraft Monday morning, and the nine-passenger plane departed 90 minutes later.

The Airport director Peter Horton said this is a historic flight, but there remain many things to be done before it can be a regular service. Horton said there isn’t yet a timetable to officially restart the air route. Earlier, it took more than 2 years for the US and Cuba to complete all necessary procedures to allow the first flight.