The Jet Airways Boeing 737 flight that touched down at Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport today scored a first — it was the first private Indian airline to fly to Nepal. Jet Airways, which came up in 1993, has larger plans in mind which only take off from the current civil aviation policy that allows air links between SAARC countries.
After linking Chennai to Colombo, Sri Lanka, in March 2004, the Kathmandu flight is the second international flight on the Jet Airways network.
By June-end, the airline plans to introduce a flight from Kolkata to Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Jet Airways CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schauer said: ‘‘If a market develops between India and Pakistan, we will explore that airlink as well.’’
The airline is also considering the possibility of expanding the air connection to Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. The mid-day flight from Delhi to Kathmandu has been scheduled keeping in mind not only connectivity from other Indian metropolitans, but also considering transit for tourists arriving on international flights to Delhi.
CEO of Nepal Tourism Board, Tek Bahadur Dandi, said the flight marked a historic day for Nepalese travel and trade.