Passenger occupancy on international flights can reach 90%

KATHMANDU, Sep 13:International airlines are boosting the number of flights as the tourist season begins and Dashain Tihar approaches.

Various airlines are preparing to expand flights while flight occupancy has already hit 90%. Airlines are rapidly informing Nepal's Civil Aviation Authority (CAAN) of their plans to expand flights.CAAN permission is required to add flights.

Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC), Himalaya Airlines, Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, Air India, Vistara Air, Malaysia Airlines, Jazeera Air, Singapore Airlines, Korean Air, Air Indigo, and other airlines have already begun the planning process for additional flights.

The number of passengers on flights has increased dramatically as Dashain approaches, coinciding with the peak season for international tourists. Passenger occupancy has begun to rise above 90%. "Various airlines have already informed us about increasing the number of flights," said Subas Jha, spokesperson for the CAAN's Tribhuvan airport office; "most of the airlines are adding flights from October." According to him, the number of passengers flying from Gulf countries has increased dramatically.

Himalaya Airlines has begun studies towards increasing flights to other destinations. The number of travelers began to rise after September. That is why, according to a company employee, "we have begun studying where and how much to add flights." In September, the tourist season begins. More visitors visit Nepal in October and November than in September.

Qatar Airways, which now operates four daily flights to Qatar, plans to increase the number of flights as the number of passengers increases. Because passenger occupancy has surpassed 85 percent, the NAC is also preparing to add more flights.

The NAC, which operates two daily flights in India, stated that occupancy is high. According to NAC spokesperson Ramesh Paudel, coping with the pressure of Dashain will be challenging given the current occupancy. "Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore have a two-way occupancy rate of 85 percent", he stated.

The NAC now operates 10 flights per week to Delhi and three flights per week to Mumbai and Bangalore. The NAC's destinations include Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Doha, Dubai, and ten other cities.

With rising customer demand, Indian airline Air India plans to introduce seven new routes. Passenger occupancy on two-way flights exceeds 90%. "The movement of Nepalis and foreigners is now significant," stated a company official in Nepal. "We intend to add one more flight per day to our winter schedule." The company now operates 25 flights per week between Kathmandu and Delhi.

Despite an increase in the number of passengers on flights for purposes such as business and tourism, rates have not been raised. Passengers can purchase 'reduced fare' tickets. Passengers who reserve a ticket a day in advance can get a one-way flight for just 10,000 rupees. According to the employee, the highest fare is up to 53 thousand rupees.

Vistara Air currently operates one daily trip from Kathmandu to Delhi and plans to add another. "Currently, we are operating one flight daily," said Neeraj Rimal, CEO of Vistara's general sales agency in Nepal, Travel Right. Even though it is currently the low season, there is still a high demand for travelers. Keeping this in mind, we intend to add one flight per day.' According to him, tickets for the Kathmandu-Delhi flight range from 11,000 to 60,000 rupees.

Singapore Airlines will employ Boeing 787-10 series aircraft for Kathmandu flights due to high passenger demand during Dashain. From September 25, the company will switch from Boeing 737 Max to Boeing 787-10 series aircraft.

Sudhir Pandey, director of the official GSA Everest Express Tours & Travel, stated that the firm has expedited the plan to fly through Dreamliner with 337 seats due to the demand of travelers arriving and returning to Kathmandu by making Singapore a transit.

For one month, Dreamliner will deliver the service on Tuesdays and Fridays. "We are confident that this will relieve stress on passengers," said Pandey, the manager. Singapore Airlines now runs seven commercial flights to Kathmandu every week. Pandey said that passenger occupancy on planes has reached 90%.

those to the Middle East are in more demand than those to other parts of the world. According to Ravichandra Singh, director of Society International Travel, there is a demand to treble the number of flights to Middle Eastern regions since many young people who have gone to work would return to celebrate Dashain Tihar. The number of visitors to Nepal from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Malaysia, and other countries has begun to rise. As a result, there is no way to add flights," Singh explained.

Every day, various airlines make roughly 100 flights and landings in Nepal.