POKHARA, Jan 13: The tourism sector has expressed satisfaction after receiving assurances from the regulatory body, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), that solo paragliding flights, which have been suspended for more than two years, will be reopened and regular paragliding flights will be made more convenient. According to business owners, Pokhara's paragliding is ranked among the top five in the world. However, Pokhara's paragliding flights have recently come under scrutiny.
With preparations for the opening of Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA), paragliding flights previously operating from Sarangkot in Pokhara were moved to Mandredhunga, some distance away. At the same time, solo paragliding flights were also halted. Later, paragliding flights were shifted to Toripani near Sarangkot, but solo flights were not allowed. From Sarangkot, Mandredhunga is accessed via Toripani. Sarangkot, Toripani, and Mandredhunga are mountainous regions in the same range.
Although Mandredhunga was chosen over Sarangkot due to the international airport, it was later relocated to Toripani. In any case, business owners had been requesting a shift back to Sarangkot. Similarly, they had been demanding that solo flights be allowed. They say that the authorities are now positively considering their demands, which have been made for the past two years.
According to Krishna Bhandari, the outgoing president of the Nepal Aviation Sports Association (NASA), the umbrella organization for paragliding professionals, during discussions with professionals, Director General of CAAN Pradeep Adhikari assured that solo paragliding flights would be resumed, and flights from Toripani would also be organized.
“The Director General of the Authority has told us that solo flights will be opened and flights from Toripani will also be arranged,” Bhandari said, “Even though the head of the Authority himself has given this assurance, we are optimistic. We expect that solo paragliding flights will be resumed soon, and measures will be taken to allow flights from Sarangkot.”
Efforts we put into our work are hardly visible
He added that paragliding professionals were pleased after receiving assurances from the Director General that efforts were being made to restore Pokhara’s paragliding to its former state. "With the shift of flights from Sarangkot to Toripani and the suspension of solo flights, the paragliding sector became very weak. The identity has been lost, but now we are hopeful that things will improve," he said, "We understand that the Authority's return to paragliding means shifting flights from Toripani back to Sarangkot."
Sarangkot used to be the main takeoff point for paragliding flights in Pokhara, with landings at Sedi-Khapaudi. Now, takeoff and landing are happening at Toripani and Pame respectively. According to Bhandari, when flights operated from Sarangkot, around 500 people would fly every day. However, now only around 100 people are flying. "Since the shift from Sarangkot, the paragliding business has shrunk to 20 percent," he said, "There is concern that businessmen and pilots may be displaced." Currently, 56 paragliding companies are operating flights in Pokhara.
Apart from that, Bhandari mentioned that the lack of solo flights has displaced pilots and sent a wrong message about Nepal. "If solo flights were allowed, pilots would be able to fly, and various paragliding competitions could be held in the skies of Pokhara," he said, "However, all of these have been stopped. Solo pilots, who wanted to fly in Pokhara, one of the top five destinations in the world, stopped coming to Nepal. Their arrival would also increase."
Since solo paragliding guests typically stay in Pokhara for a longer period and spend more, the tourism sector has benefited from their presence. However, with the cessation of solo flights, the sector has lost this income, he said.
"The message that solo flights are not allowed in Nepal has reached the international market. Businessmen have lost income because solo pilots, who would stay for a month, are no longer coming," he said. In addition, competitions like the pre-World Cup and the Asian Tour of paragliding, which used to take place in the skies of Pokhara, have also been halted.
"The Authority has not set a date for when solo flights will be resumed and restored to their previous status," he said, "However, we expect facilitation based on our demands. Instead of spending money, you have banned it. 200-300 pilots used to come to Pokhara during the season, but now they are not coming."
After Nepal Airsports Association (NAA) Chairman Anil KC was displaced from Sarangkot, the charm of paragliding has significantly diminished. "Nowadays, paragliding flights are no longer visible from Pokhara. Until recently, guests would come to fly after seeing the paragliding flights in the sky above Sarangkot from all over Pokhara city. But now, it has become anonymous," he said, “The number of guests in Pokhara used to be estimated by the number of paragliding flights in the sky above Sarangkot. But now it is not seen anywhere. While boating on Fewa Lake, guests would be tempted to fly after seeing paragliding flights on the hills of Sarangkot."
According to Chairman KC, if paragliding is shifted back to Sarangkot, businessmen are ready to organize the flights, even if the previously designated flight area is reduced. "If there are issues due to the airport, we are willing to reduce the flight area. We can fly in an organized and disciplined manner by specifying a new flight area," he said, "Therefore, it is most suitable if we shift back to Sarangkot." He added that since businessmen can still fly even if the old flight area in Sarangkot is reduced and narrowed, the new flight area would be acceptable to them.
Similarly, he mentioned that the tourism sector has been affected by the absence of solo flights. "You can fly tandem after learning to fly solo. Two people can fly together in tandem flights. However, since there was no way to learn solo flying, new pilots could not enter the field," said Chairman KC." The paragliding sector was collapsing due to the displacement of old pilots and the inability to recruit new ones. Companies were struggling. Now, the authority has assured us that it will be restored to its previous condition."
According to him, due to the lack of enough tourists interested in paragliding, only a maximum of one hundred pilots have been able to find work. Out of three hundred pilots, the remaining two hundred have become unemployed.
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