KATHMANDU, OCTOBER 10

Hundreds of tourists have been stranded in Ramechhap after Ramechhap-Lukla flights were halted due to bad weather for the past three days.

According to Managing Director of Himalayan Guides Iswari Paudel, around 2,000 tourists, especially foreigners, are stranded in Manthali, and around 1,500 in Lukla.

"While we can't control the weather, tourists are having to suffer unnecessary hassles due to lack of proper planning and management," Paudel told THT.

Phurba Gyalzen Sherpa, managing director of Heli Everest, said some tourists had been forced to stay in tents due to lack of proper of accommodation.

"The area cannot accommodate more than 50 tourists.

But flight cancellations have stranded a large number of tourists," he said.

Autumn is the busiest time of the year for Tenzing-Hillary Airport in Lukla as it is the gateway to the Everest region.

In a bid to reduce air traffic congestion at Tribhuvan International Airport, regular flights to Lukla from Kathmandu have been shifted to Manthali since October 1. Summit Air, Tara Air, and Sita Air have been operating regular flights to Lukla from Manthali.

Paudel termed the move 'short-sighted' as the hospitality industry in Ramechhap is in its infancy. "To minimise the air traffic, authorities concerned could arrange night flights to Biratnagar and Pokhara."

Sherpa said constructing an airport in Kavre was more practical than using the Ramechhap airport for Lukla flights. "That way, even if their flights to Lukla are cancelled, passengers will not have to worry about accommodation and can easily return to Kathmandu if they so wished."

But, Spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal Jagannath Niraula said CAAN did not plan to reconsider its decision of conducting flights to Lukla from Ramechhap.

"We realise that tourists have been inconvenienced due to bad weather, but this is not really a normal phenomenon for this time of the year," he said, adding that luxury hotels will come up in Ramechhap in the near future.

He said the decision to conduct regular flights to Lukla from Ramechhap was taken following consultation with the private sector. "If they are having any issues, they should come to us directly."

As for building an airport in Kavre, Niraula termed it 'impractical' as the distance between Kathmandu and Kavre was not much.

According to Dwarika Achami, head of Tenzing-Hillary Airport, tourists have been managing the journey by trekking down to Surke and taking a helicopter from there to Ramechhap and vice-versa. "The Meteorological Forecasting Division says weather will be clear tomorrow.

So, we have our fingers crossed," he added.

Meanwhile, Tara Air today conducted nine flights to Phaplu Airport from Ramechhap.

According to Sudarshan Bartaula, spokesperson for Tara Air, the airline shuttled its passengers to Phaplu as the helicopter ride from there to Lukla is shorter compared to Ramechhap.

A version of this article appears in the print on October 11, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.