At just after 7am on Wednesday, 31 March, a brand new airline sent its first jet roaring into skies over Coventry Airport.
For holiday operators, Thomsonfly, there was a huge sigh of relief when 737s took off for Rome and Jersey - albeit half an hour late because of a security scare.
Outside the airport, however, angry protesters held a mock funeral procession to make sure no one thought their fight to stop the plans was over.
To see pictures from the launch day at Coventry Airport, click on the Images button below.
To see pictures of the first Thomsonfly flight from Coventry to Jersey, scroll to the bottom of the page.
After months of preparation, the temporary terminal was opened to passengers for the first time at around 5am.
The first plane due to leave the airport was the 6.35am to Jersey, closely followed by a plane to Rome.
However, a security scare - believed to have been caused by a bottle of shower gel - held each up by around 30 minutes.
|  | Armed police on guard at the airport |
Security appeared to be very tight for the launch, with armed police guarding the departures gate and keeping and eye on arrivals.
After the initial hiccup, things seemed to go smoothly although some passengers were unhappy with the temporary terminal.
Some were also left disgruntled after being forced to queue outside when the check-in desk got crowded.
The voiciferous campaigners who are leading a bid to halt the airport's expansion formed a mock funeral procession to demonstrate their upset that Thomsonfly had been allowed to launch.
The group, all wearing black and some in costume, somberly marched from the Baginton Oak to the West Entrance of the airport.
|  | Protesters warn they will not back down |
Carrying placards and banners, they formed a picket at the entrance to the public car park in a peaceful protest.
The protesters gazed over the fence as the maiden flight jetted off, before dispersing.
Leader of the protest, Cllr Ron Ravenhall, said the start of passenger flights at Coventry did not signal the end of the campaign.
BBC WM reporter Ben Godfrey travelled on the first flight from Coventry Airport to Jersey.
|  | The view from Coventry's first flight |
The journey to Jersey was due to be the first flight out of the airport but security issues meant the Rome plane left first.
Despite this, there was still a great sense of occassion, with passengers enjoying Bucks Fizz and a party atmosphere on the plane.
Ben enjoyed a whistle-stop visit to Jersey before heading back to Coventry on a return flight later that night.
Take a look at his fantastic pictures of the journey by clicking on the images button below.
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