Nepal Airlines buys three Twin Otters – Minister

Nepal Airlines issues RFP for three STOL aircraft

23.10.2023 – 05:48 UTC

Nepal Airlines (RA, Kathmandu) has issued a request for proposal (RFP) for three short take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft. The RFP, formally titled NAC-PURCHASE/01/STOL/80-8, was issued on October 22, 2023, and invites bids from STOL aircraft manufacturers wishing to participate in a one-stage, two-envelope bidding process.

The state-owned airline is looking for brand new aircraft with zero flight hours and no more than 25 hours of flight time for test flights. The RFP documentation specifies a minimum engine capacity of 620 axle horsepower that can provide at least 4,000 hours of flight before any mandatory overhaul. The aircraft must be capable of operating on runways of 1,500 feet or less, be FAA and EASA approved, and come with a fully integrated digital avionics package (including an FDR, a CVR, a 406 MHz ELT with latitude and longitude transmission, HF radio and a other ADF radio).

Each aircraft must be able to carry a minimum of 18 passengers plus one cabin crew. All passenger seats must be able to be removed/folded and refitted when necessary. Carrying capacity…

Nepal Airlines recommended selling Chinese planes for scrap

11.10.2023 – 04:11 UTC

Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC), trading as Nepal Airlines (RA, Kathmandu), is asking NPR 220 million Nepalese rupees (USD1.65 million) for five Chinese-made aircraft that have sat idle at Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport since mid- ​2020.

According to The Kathmandu Post, an independent appraiser, US-based Aviation Asset Management Inc., arrived at the scrap price after being commissioned to value the planes earlier this year. The recommendation to sell the two 56-passenger MA-60s and three Y12s for scrap follows several failed campaigns by the NAC to offload them.

The recommendation, which cost the state-owned NAC USD 20,000 to operate, has reportedly put the airline and the government in a quandary. The airline is keen to divest the aircraft but is hesitant to do so at such a low price as the Chinese government, via the EXIM Bank of China, provided a soft loan of NPR 3.72 billion ($27.9 million) (plus an NPR2 ). 0.94 billion (USD22.1 million) grant) to buy the planes.

The pair of MA-60s are 9N-AKQ (msn 1007) and 9N-AKR (msn 1008), while the three Y12s are 9N-AKS (msn…

Nepal’s CAA moves to block Korean Air’s Kathmandu flights

27.09.2023 – 02:46 UTC

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has moved to block Korean Air (KE, Seoul Incheon) from flying to Nepal in retaliation for South Korea’s aviation regulator barring Nepal Airlines (RA, Kathmandu) from flying to Seoul Incheon, apparently violates a 20-year-old bilateral air traffic agreement.

Korean Air currently flies up to three times a week on the Seoul Incheon – Kathmandu city pair using the A330-300. It is the only airline that flies the city pair and flies regularly between the two countries. While Korean Air received CAAN approval to operate the Kathmandu flights, as per the air traffic agreement, reciprocal permission from Korea’s Office Civil Aviation (KOCA) for Nepal Airlines to fly to Seoul is yet to be obtained. KOCA has failed to provide any justification for this.

Himalaya Times reports on the issue and says CAAN has now decided to block Korean Air flights from October 29, 2023. CAAN says the current monopoly-like situation encourages high prices and “non-competitiveness”. CAAN spokesperson Jagannath Niraula said Nepal Airlines had spoken to…

Nepal CAA set to revise minimum fleet requirements

12.09.2023 – 03:50 UTC

Draft regulations under consideration by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) will mandate new airlines to start operations with at least three aircraft and have concrete plans for five within five years.

The 10th amendment to the guidelines for air service operating certificates aims to make new entrants more operationally robust. In comments to Kathmandu-based media, CAAN spokesperson Jagannath Niroula said new airlines that do not meet these fleet requirements may be required to merge with another carrier.

In addition, the draft regulations stipulate that an airline’s board members, senior management and shareholders should not conduct activities or publicly express opinions on aviation-related matters that are contrary to the position of CAAN and the Government of Nepal.

The proposed guidelines state that executives and officers must no longer have interests in or engage in businesses or activities that conflict with the interests of the airline. One report cites the example of a person who has a stake in an airline and also a travel company that does business with another local airline. Practicing pilots will not be…