KATHMANDU, Nov 19: A total of 123 flights have been canceled after the runway at Tribhuvan International Airport (TA) was closed at night from November 8.
Foreign airlines operating in Nepal, which previously had three daily flights, have reduced their operations by two flights. Airlines that originally operated two daily flights have now cut back to just one.
The closure of the runway at night for the expansion of the taxiway has led to a 30 percent reduction in flights, according to Gyanendra Bhul, information officer at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN). Bhul mentioned that, among the canceled flights, those originating from Kathmandu are being encouraged to operate from Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa.
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Airlines such as AirAsia, Qatar Airways, Jazeera Airways, and Nepal Airlines have started operating flights from Bhairahawa. Other airlines are also adjusting their schedules according to their convenience.
The 30 percent reduction in flights will result in a loss of about Rs 2 billion for the CAAN due to the closure of the TIA for 10 hours daily for the next 5 months. Bhul mentioned that, although the CAAN will bear this loss, it had to implement the flight reduction in order to improve the situation in the coming days.
When the runway at the TIA is closed for 10 hours, the highest number of flight reductions are seen from Air Arabia, Air India, Fly Dubai, Indigo, Qatar Airways, and others.
These airlines used to have three to four flights daily. For Qatar Airways, which had the highest number of flights, the flights have been reduced from 28 to 14 per week. This represents a 50 percent reduction in flights to Kathmandu. Similarly, other airlines have also seen reductions, with airlines that had 21 flights a week now operating 14, and those with 14 weekly flights reduced to seven.
In response to the flight reductions, foreign airlines operating in Nepal have raised their fares, citing an increase in passenger demand. They argue that due to higher demand and limited capacity, the fare hikes were unavoidable. As a result, airlines operating from Nepal to all destinations have increased their fares since November 8.
