Kathmandu, March 31

Himalaya Airlines’ third new Airbus A320-214 aircraft arrived at Tribhuvan International Airport from Hamburg, Germany today at 10:45am.

The aircraft, with the registration number 9N-ALW, was welcomed by a ceremonial water cannon salute after it touched down.

This is the second A320 aircraft that has been delivered to the airline within the year 2017 and now the airline is the owner of three Airbus 320 aircraft in its fleet, as per a media release.

The airline held a special welcome ceremony on the ramp of Tribhuvan International Airport. Himalaya Airlines’ President Zhao Guo Qiang, Vice President of Administration, Vijay Shrestha along with senior management team were present during the event.

“The year 2017 has been the year of achievements for Himalaya Airlines as we had welcomed our second aircraft on January 31, and launched two new sectors — Kuala Lumpur and Yangon — in February. With the arrival of third

Airbus 320, we plan to expand our global network and strengthen the air connectivity of Nepal to the international arena,” Shrestha has been quoted as saying.

This Airbus 320-214 series is a narrow-body aircraft with capacity to accommodate eight and 150 passengers in its business and economy seat configurations, respectively.

The third Airbus will enter into service in April, 2017, and will facilitate flights to new sectors such as Dammam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bangkok, Beijing, Lhasa and Chengdu along with currently flying sectors.

Himalaya Airlines is a Nepal-China joint venture that was established in August, 2014. The airline started its first scheduled flight operations from May 31, 2016, flying directly to Doha, Qatar.

Over the next five years, the airline has a target of acquiring 15 aircraft to connect Kathmandu with various new destinations in Asia and beyond. The airline will also introduce long-haul wide-body aircraft of A330 family in due course of time for the operation of direct flights to Japan, South Korea, Europe, Australia, and America.