POKHARA- The $215.96 million Pokhara International Airport (PHH) finally welcomed its first scheduled passenger flight on Monday, March 31, more than a year after its inauguration.
Nepal-Tibet joint venture Himalaya Airlines (H9) operated the flight from Lhasa (LXA), Tibet, marking a significant milestone for the facility. A 144-seater Airbus A319 landed in Pokhara from Lhasa (LXA) with 107 passengers, which also received a water cannon salute at Pokhara International Airport (PHH).
Photo- Himalaya AirlinesPokhara Airport
The Airbus A319 departed from Lhasa Gonggar Airport at 2:39 pm Chinese local time and landed in Pokhara at 1:56 pm Nepal time. Despite slight delays due to wind conditions, the aircraft carried 107 passengers: 32 Chinese and 75 Nepali travelers. Airport officials welcomed the 144-seater plane with a traditional water cannon salute.
This historic flight came nearly 15 months after the airport’s January 1, 2023 inauguration. The 90-minute Pokhara-Lhasa route now operates once weekly.
Photo- Martin Fester; Wikimedia CommonsAirport Incentives
Prem Nath Thakur, general manager of Pokhara Airport, expressed optimism about future flights. The airport has implemented significant incentives to attract airlines, including:
- Waived landing fees for two years
- No parking charges for two years
- Free ground handling services
- Removal of the Rs3,000 passenger service charge for departing tourists
Despite these measures, airlines face substantial operational costs. Vijay Shrestha, spokesperson of Himalaya Airlines (H9), highlighted fuel prices as a major concern. Aviation fuel costs $1,003 per kiloliter in Kathmandu (KTM) compared to $848.32 in New Delhi (DEL).
Pokhara International Airport; Photo- Spokesperson Of Chinese Embassy In Nepal (X)Expansion Plans & Tourism Initiatives
Himalaya Airlines (H9) plans to increase flight frequency based on passenger demand. The airline aims to connect Pokhara and Kathmandu with ten different Chinese tourist destinations, with an ambitious goal of bringing one million Chinese tourists annually to Nepal.
Faced with limited government promotion, Pokhara’s tourism entrepreneurs have launched their initiatives. The Pokhara Tourism Council partnered with China’s Sichuan Airlines (3U) to operate charter flights between Chengdu (CTU) and Pokhara (PHH).
Baburam Pandey, acting president of the council, confirmed that Sichuan Airlines (3U) committed to ten weeks of flights, potentially bringing 1,250 Chinese tourists to Pokhara. Each chartered flight costs Nepali businesses Rs7.8 million to guarantee service.
Photo- byeangel from Tsingtao, China; Wikimedia CommonsGeopolitics
The Chinese-funded airport was designed to make Pokhara, Nepal’s tourism capital, less dependent on Kathmandu for international visitors. The facility serves as a gateway to the famous Annapurna Circuit trekking route and has triggered significant hospitality investments in the region.
The project became entangled in geopolitics when the Chinese Embassy described it as a flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project, while Nepal’s government hasn’t officially acknowledged this connection.
Pokhara’s tourism entrepreneurs lobbied intensely for the airport, even staging hunger strikes in 2012. Nepal secured a 20-year soft loan from the Chinese EXIM Bank in 2016 to fund construction. The airport’s bowl-shaped, narrow valley location limits it to narrow-body aircraft operations.
India continues to deny air entry routes to both Pokhara (PHH) and Bhairahawa International Airport (BWA).
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This is the Airport that has No Commercial Flights
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