Nepal Airlines planning to lease Jet Airways craft

Kathmandu: Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) is working out to bring an aircraft from an Indian airline - Jet Airways - on lease, after the corporation failed to repair an engine for its aircraft that is coming home after over a month long c-check in Brunei. A high level team, including NAC MD Gautam Das Shrestha, Corporate Director Raju KC and Financial Director Gobardan Khadka, left for Mumbai Monday to hold discussions over the lease.
“The corporation will first lease an aircraft for a month but may later extend the time,” a source at the NAC said. “Efforts are being made for acquiring a Boeing 737-800 aircraft on a wet lease.”
NAC regulations allow the managing director to deicide on leasing an aircraft for up to a month.
However, officials said that if the corporation goes for the aircraft, it will not be operated to the maximum extent as it can not conduct flights at night. The Indian Civil Aviation regulations bar Indian registered aircrafts from flying to Nepal at night. According to the regulation, an Indian registered aircraft must leave Nepal's air territory 25 minutes before sun set. Otherwise, the aircraft need to make a stay in Kathmandu for the night.
Owing to the restriction, the aircraft will be able to operate flight to only a single destination a day, said an official.
11/09/07 Kantipur Online

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Categories: Foreign Sep 2007, Jet Airways Sep 2007