Nepal Airlines Corp seeks labour permits for three foreign flight instructors
Kathmandu, June 18
Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has applied for three labour permits for ‘type rating instructors' at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA).
The flag carrier is seeking three-month work permits and non-tourist visas for two French and one American instructors to train NAC's pilots to fly soon-to-arrive brand new Airbus 330-200 wide-body aeroplanes. NAC is seeking the permits and visas for French nationals Antonie Gaignard and Francois Fernrt and American national Juan Paz.
“The three instructors will be training Nepali pilots to fly our new Airbus planes over the course of three months,” informed Rabindra Shrestha, spokesperson for NAC.
According to an agreement between NAC and AAR Corporation, the latter would provide the aircraft to the corporation in partnership with German Capital and Hi-Fly Airlines. The agreement had a clause that Hi Fly would send three instructor pilots to train the local pilots here to fly the Airbus planes.
Also today, NAC published a notice seeking sealed quotations from all reputed pilot recruiting companies to supply pilots on contractual basis for its different fleets. Through the notice, NAC has sought 10 captains and 10 flight officers for A330-200 planes, two pilots and four flight officers for existing A320 narrow-body aircraft, two pilots and two flight officers for Boeing 757, five pilots for China-made MA60, 21 pilots for DHC-6 twin-otter and six pilots for China-made Y12e.
Moreover, NAC is preparing to send $68,194,054 (approximately Rs 6.81 billion) to the escrow account held by Norton Rose Fulbright in Europe as the remaining payment for its first new Airbus 330-200 aircraft. The plane is scheduled to arrive here on June 27.
Earlier this month, NAC had sent a proposal to MoCTCA seeking foreign exchange facility to make the payment. It was subsequently approved and the ministry sent a letter to Nepal Rastra Bank on Sunday asking it to provide the exchange facility to NAC.
NAC sent $39,500,000 (Rs 3.95billion) as pre-delivery and $500,000 million (Rs 50 million) as commitment fee for each Airbus 330-200 wide-body in June 2017. The contract with AAR is so far the largest ever aircraft purchase deal in Nepal's aviation history.
