KATHMANDU, Feb 22: The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) has rejected the proposal of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) to ban the import of European helicopters due to safety concerns.
The civil aviation regulatory body made the proposal arguing that most of the helicopters involved in accidents in Nepal are manufactured by European company Airbus.
Deputy Director General of CAAN Hansa Raj Pandey told Republica that a proposal sent to the ministry after internal discussion has been rejected by the ministry after considering the impediments in the operation of regular helicopter flights due to an Europe-centric ban.
“We did not prepare the draft of a new policy to ban the European helicopters but simply sent a proposal to the ministry to understand their stance on the issue,” Pandey said, “However, the ministry has rejected our proposed ban on the import of European helicopters.”
Pandey added the ban on the import of helicopters manufactured by European companies is based on the authority’s existing regulations on minimum technical equipment requirement for ensuring aviation safety and their history of accidents in Nepal.
CAAN requests Europe to ease ban on Nepali airlines
Since 2023, seven helicopter accidents resulting in 13 fatalities have taken place in Nepal. All of the helicopters involved in the accidents were manufactured by Airbus. There are as many as 12 helicopter companies in Nepal which own 32 helicopters in total, most of which are Airbus’ H125 helicopter, also known as Eurocopter.
Pandey informed Republica that the CAAN is worried that European helicopter manufacturers are using Nepali airspace as a testing ground and marketing stunt for helicopter sales globally.
“We have noticed that the European companies tend to flaunt their helicopters’ ability to navigate in the demanding airspace and terrains of Nepal to promote their aircraft globally,” Pandey said.
According to a high-ranking official at the CAAN, the discussion on banning the import of helicopters manufactured by European companies was prompted by the China-based Harbin Aircraft Industry Group’s move to promote its helicopters in Africa by using its operation in Nepal as a marketing tool.
Pandey stated that the ban on European helicopter imports is going to be introduced also on the basis of their lower power which renders them ill-equipped for Nepali terrains.
“One reason behind the unsuitability of European helicopters in Nepal’s airspace is their lower horsepower,” he said, “Airbus helicopters, including H125 and H130 which are most used in Nepal, have lower than 1700 horsepower.” He added that the proposed ban on European helicopters mentions the minimum requirement of 3000 horsepower helicopters for import to Nepal.
Most of the helicopters traversing Nepali skies are manufactured by Airbus. Only a few companies own helicopters manufactured by the US-based company Bell Textron. The authority’s decision will heavily benefit Bell Textron as their helicopters have a capacity of 3,000 horsepower.
According to Pandey, the authority has already stopped the import of Airbus helicopters procured by Mountain Air through a letter of credit. The helicopters are said to have already reached China.
The source added that the CAAN’s move to ban the imports of European helicopters was also a rebuttal of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s continued practice of keeping Nepali airline operators in their blacklist despite Nepal having improved most safety indicators in the past decade.
“We implemented a number of improvements in Nepal’s aviation safety regulations which have increased Nepal’s safety assessment rating to a point higher than the global average in the past decade,” the source said, “However, the EASA has still banned our national flag carrier Nepal Airlines from European airspace.” After the EASA set the condition of splitting the CAAN into a regulatory body and an air service provider to improve safety standards, the government has registered two bills in the parliament.
Pandey dismissed the alleged retaliatory stance by the CAAN on the EASA. “Currently, both the aircraft equipment imports and aviation services in Nepal adhere to EASA standard and most of our aircraft are manufactured in Europe. Even the pilots who receive accreditation from the Federal Aviation Authority of the US need to get the license from the EASA to fly aircraft in Nepal,” he said, “It would not be wise to ban the imports of European aircraft in this scenario.”
Another source in the CAAN claimed that the over-reliance on EASA for aviation operation in Nepal and monopolistic market presence in Nepal were the main causes behind the proposed ban.
