KATHMANDU, Dec 28: Domestic carriers flew around 1.18 million passengers in the first nine months of 2016, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN).
In the same period last year, domestic airlines had served 988,000 air passengers, Birendra Shrestha, the spokesperson for CAAN, said in a press meet in Kathmandu on Wednesday.
Informing media persons about the progress made in civil aviation sector over the past year, Shrestha also said that airports in Kalikot, Arghakanchi, Okhaldhunga, Lamjung, Gulmi and Ilam are under different phases of construction. "Similarly, work of Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa, Pokhara International Airport and Nijgadh International Airport is also going on," he said, adding that the runway rehabilitation work of Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) is also underway.
Devananda Upadhyay, director general of TIA, said that the rehabilitation work will complete in 14 to 18 months.
CAAN also informed that international carriers flew 2.5 million passengers in the first nine months of 2016. The international airlines had carried only 2.4 million passengers in the same period last year.
Speaking at the program, Sanjeev Gautam, director general of CAAN, said that aviation regulator has written a letter to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), outlining the improvements that Nepal has made aviation safety. “"We have asked the ICAO to carry out an audit of corrective measures that we have taken to address the significant safety concerns (SSC) relating to operations and other aspects," he added.
The European Union (EU) has, for more than three years, put Nepali airlines in the list of carriers banned from flying in the European airspace.
Domestic air passenger movement up 41 percent
