Shree Airlines has become the second private airline to receive permission to operate regular international flights from domestic flights. Buddha Air previously received permission in 2010.
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Shree Airlines, which operates domestic flights, has received permission to operate regular international flights. The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal granted the permission to the company last Friday.
According to Anil Manandhar, Managing Director and Spokesperson of the airline, Shree had previously only been allowed to operate 'non-scheduled charter' flights in the international sector. 'Now we have received permission to operate regular international flights,' he said. The company has already sent a formal letter to the Nepal government on Monday, initiating the necessary 'designation' process for flights to India and Bangladesh.
According to a senior official of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, in the next process, the ministry will recommend Shree Airlines for India and Bangladesh as per the bilateral air services agreement. The recommendation will be forwarded through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the embassies of the respective countries.
Shree Airlines has become the second private airline to receive permission to operate regular international flights from domestic flights. Earlier, Buddha Air had obtained an international flight permission (Air Operator Certificate) in 2010 and flew to Paro International Airport in Bhutan. Currently, Buddha is suspending flights to Bhutan and operating flights to Varanasi and Kolkata in India using ATR-72 aircraft. The company has 15 ATR aircraft.
The second largest operator in domestic flights is Yeti Airlines. It has 7 ATR-72 aircraft and operates about 60 domestic flights daily. Yeti had obtained non-scheduled and charter flight permission in Kartik 2078. It has not yet made its plans for international flights public.
Shree, which is in third place with at least 40 domestic flights daily, had obtained 'non-scheduled and charter flight' permission during the Covid pandemic. Shree had conducted a demo (test) flight in Kolkata, India on Chaitra 24, 2082. A team of 15 people, including 8 technicians from the authority, participated in the test flight. After the technical team reported that the test flight was successful, the authority added the ‘international’ sector to Shree’s air operator certificate on Friday.
Shree has 17 aircraft. Of these, seven are Canadian Dash-800s, two CRJ-200s, six Russian MI helicopters and two B3E helicopters.
Established in 1999, Shree expanded its services to the domestic market by introducing the CRJ-200 aircraft in April 2017. Shree Airlines, which started as Air Ananya during its establishment, is one of the largest operators of Russian Mi-17 helicopters in Southeast Asia. It is also the first Nepali air partner airline of the United Nations and the World Food Program.
Shree will now need final permission from the Civil Aviation Offices of Bangladesh and India to operate regular international flights. After the permission, Shri should start flying by appointing agent companies in India and Bangladesh and selling tickets. Shri will fly with Dash and CRJ jets in the first phase. Then, he plans to bring three narrow-body aircraft within a year.
The Bombardier jet fleet operating in Nepal is among the most popular and advanced regional aircraft in the world. The Dash-800, powered by twin turbofan engines, has a speed of 670 km/h. CRJ jets are capable of flying at speeds of 790 to 860 km/h. The ATR-72 aircraft has twin-engine turboprop engines. The ATR aircraft can fly at a maximum speed of 497 km/h.
Small aircraft flying to regional cities include Nepal's Buddha Air and Bhutan's Royal Bhutan Airlines. Buddha flies to Varanasi and Kolkata in India using a 72-seat ATR, while Royal Bhutan Airlines flies to Paro-Kathmandu-Delhi using a 40-seat ATR-42 aircraft.
