KATHMANDU, MARCH 9
Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) is facing serious allegations of violating safety protocols at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in China.
On February 6, a Nepal Airlines flight bound for Kathmandu, commanded by Senior Captain Udhab Ghimire, reportedly breached aviation safety rules in a sign of gross negligence at the Chinese mainland airport.
China's Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) has repeatedly sought clarification from NAC authorities, but the corporation has allegedly ignored their requests. According to sources, the CAAC formally wrote to NAC detailing a ground mishap at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport and requested flight operation information related to navigation errors in the takeoff area.
A senior official at the state-owned carrier confirmed that the CAAC also asked NAC to describe the visibility conditions, communication protocols, runway surface status, and other relevant environmental factors at the time of the incident.
However, NAC not only failed to provide the necessary information within the provided time of one week, but in a blatant display of safety-unconsciousness and unaccountability, the responsible officials of Operations Department and Safety Office tried to shy away and arrogantly declined a meeting proposed by the CAAC for March 10 citing its busy schedule due to the election period in Nepal.
Following NAC's failure to adequately address these critical safety concerns, the CAAC issued a second and even stern warning to the corporation yesterday, March 9, for its continued inaction and has deemed the irresponsible act as unacceptable. While Nepal Airlines does not have a very outstanding record of safety and reliable operations, the concerned Captain in question has also been marred in several safety-related issues and reprimanded by CAAN.
Multiple times for level bust incident in Hong Kong, low cockpit oxygen issue as well as rest period violation in the past few years were reported after Ghimire assumed his commandership in the Airbus A-320, NAC sources claimed.
CAAC has made its stand clear that they require a formal and detailed safety investigation report and put up a strong stand for Nepal Airlines to deal this issue very seriously and attend the meeting summoned by CAAC. However, it is unlikely any concerned official from Nepal Airlines Operations Department or Safety Department will be likely attending the meeting scheduled for today, 10th March, 2026.
It remains to be seen how CAAC will action next, or how CAAN will deal with this safety-critical issue which has been deliberately hidden and dusted away, neither reported to CAAN or investigated in line with the existing norms of Safety Management. It is also normally rare that a foreign Civil Aviation Authority questions an operator on safety issues and is only done in severe lapses and that can potentially impact the overall safety in a huge scale.
CAAN officials refused to comment. Joint Secretary Mukesh Dangol, who heads the Civil Aviation Department at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, however, said that ministry would take any action only after it received the formal complaint. "Ministry has not formally received any information about the incident," he added.
