KATHMANDU: Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) has made an announcement today that they will provide 50 percent off on airfare of internal flights to senior citizens.

Being a government-owned airline operator, NAC has decided to provide 50 percent discount on the airfare of internal flights to senior citizens of 70 years and above, confirmed Deputy Spokesperson of NAC, Sulekh Mishra.

He added that the announcement was made as high priority in line with the decision taken by the Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Yogesh Bhattarai. He added that a meeting of the commercial department associated with the company, which took place on September 16, made a decision to this effect.

Mishra said, the discount will be provided only on the airfare of domestic flights as of now. He further clarified that to avail of this discount, the passenger must visit the NAC office in the city from where the flight will take off. They will have to carry with them an identification which will verify their age. He added that as the software development process was going on, this discount is currently not available through online bookings.

Tourism Minister Bhattarai had announced that all airline companies must provide 50 percent discount on airfare to senior citizens while publishing his one-year work plan, on August 26.

However, the Airlines Operators Association of Nepal (AOAN) said that it was not possible to provide a discount equivalent to half the airfare for passengers above 70 years. In a letter to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the AOAN had stated that airline companies were not in a position to provide such discount at a time when they were facing turbulence owing to tough market competition.