Flight landings systems are used in aviation to ensure safe and accurate landings. While there are a good many numbers of landing systems, the Instrument Landing System is said to be most widely used by airports and airlines around the world. ILS is known for its precision, reliability and accuracy. Nepal is equipped with ILS at its major airports, including the Tribhuvan International Airport and the Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA). The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal is working on installing ILS at Pokhara Regional International Airport. ILS provides both lateral and vertical guidance to aircraft, making it especially valuable in low visibility conditions such as fog, rain, or snow. ILS is considered to be a very expensive landing system to install and maintain primarily due to extensive ground-based infrastructure required, including the approach lighting systems. Yet, most airports globally use this particular system because they value aviation safety. Nepal values aviation safety, no less than any other country near or afar. That is precisely why we have an ILS installed at the country's second international airport. India – to say the least, Nepal's closest and most important neighbor bound by centuries-old historical, cultural and civilizational ties – does not seem to acknowledge it in so many words. The permission from Indian authorities is a must to operate ILS at GBIA, which is located close to the Indian border. Thanks to a lack of support from India, Nepal is in no position to use the ILS at the GBIA. As a result, the CAAN is preparing to transit to an alternative landing system known as Required Navigation Performance Authorization Required (RNP AR) system with effect from January 23.
RNP AR is a satellite-based landing approach, and is often used at airports where installing ILS is not feasible due to geographic and technological complexities. While RNP AR is less costly in terms of ground infrastructure investment it involves significant investment onboard equipment and pilot training. This landing system is used in aviation to help pilots navigate safely and accurately during specific parts of their flight, including when landing or approaching airports. According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, a validation flight for the operation of RNP AR at the GBIA has been successfully completed, and the commercial flights can now use this system from January 23. The compulsory 42-day window between the validation flight and the operation of flights ends on January 22, meaning the airline operators can now operate flights at GBIA through the RNP AR. But then there is a caveat: international airline operators would need to first receive permission from the aviation authority of their respective home countries and complete training for their pilots in order to operate flights through the RNP AR approach at the airport. They will also have to furnish proof of adequate training for the pilots and sufficient onboard investment. Such additional requirements, which are mandatory as per the international aviation protocols, could even dissuade the international airlines from opting to use GBIA. As it is, GBIA is hardly their first choice airport.
EU positive about Nepal’s aviation safety
Flights operating at the GBIA are currently facing difficulties landing aircraft at the airport from 6 pm to 10 am due to poor visibility conditions. Due to low visibility, winter flights at the GBIA have had to be diverted to other airports, discouraging international airliners to operate flights at the airport. Even as India remains reluctant to oblige to Nepal's request for granting the permission to operate ILS, Nepal should use every occasion to put the agenda across the table. India must cooperate and grant an early approval so Nepal can use ILS at the GBIA.
