Tourism Minister gets tough on single-engine aircraft

Kathmandu March 8- The Tourism Ministry has stopped registering new single-engine aircraft following the crash landing of an Air Kasthamandap P-750 XSTOL on February 26 in which its two pilots were killed. A minister-level meeting on Sunday also decided to ban passenger charter flights by single-engine planes pending a report by a government probe panel, said Joint Secretary Buddhi Sagar Lamichhane.

The five-member committee led by Lamichhane consists of an official and single-engine captain from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) and two members representing private airlines. “We have been asked to submit a report within 15 days. We have to say whether passenger charter flights by single-engine aircraft should be allowed or not besides making safety recommendations,” Lamichhane said.

There are five single-engine aircraft currently operating in Nepal. Goma Air and Makalu Air have two each and Kasthamandap Air has one.