KATHMANDU, JUNE 22
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) has withdrawn its earlier decision on night-parking for domestic airline and helicopter operators.
A meeting held between the CAAN and Airline Operators Association of Nepal (AOAN) today ended with the regulatory body allowing aircraft including helicopters to be parked at the Tribhuvan International Airport overnight as well as to conduct normal operations from the capital.
While the regulatory body announced yesterday that it would not backtrack on its decision, today CAAN asked airline operators to decide for themselves and simply inform the base stations of their choice.
On Monday, the CAAN had issued a notice mandating airline operators to shift the operation base of a number of their aircraft outside the TIA, adding that all airlines would have to make their first flight for the day from their designated base stations.
According to AOAN Spokesperson Yog Raj Kandel Sharma, the regulatory body has allowed airlines and helicopter operators to conduct operations normally from the TIA for the time being. "CAAN has asked helicopter operators to manage and relocate their base stations as per their own preference and inform the authority. Meanwhile, the CAAN has decided to manage the space for helicopters after which a feasible number of aircraft will be allowed to park there," he said.
Sharma said that the CAAN has also agreed to look into the demands of the AOAN in a phase-wise manner, adding that the regulatory body has also expressed its intention to provide maintenance subsidies to the airlines.
"The authority has also decided to allow aeroplanes to continue operations from the TIA, while also choosing their preferred base stations outside the valley and inform them," Sharma told The Himalayan Times.
On Tuesday, the AOAN had put forth a five-point demand and threatened to ground all aircraft and halt all services from today if their demands were not met. Even as a late night meeting between the AOAN and CAAN ended inconclusively, the domestic airline operators agreed not to disrupt services. Today's meeting was a continuation of yesterday's meeting.
At a press conference held on Tuesday, CAAN Director General Pradeep Adhikari had said that the number of parked aircraft at TIA had exceeded its maximum limit, which is why it had decided to relocate 66 per cent of them outside the valley. Stating that the high number of parked aircraft had caused significant problems including air/ground holdings and congestion, he had said issues like the wings of planes being clipped have become frequent due to the high density of parked aircraft at TIA.
The officials of CAAN did not respond to repeated calls and texts seeking comment regarding today's meeting.
A version of this article appears in the print on June 23, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
