KATHMANDU. Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (Caan) is all set to ban chartered passenger flights by single-engine aircraft. The move comes after two consecutive crashes this year due to engine failure. In February, an Air Kasthamandap P-750 XSTOL flight crash-landed at Chilkhaya of Kalikot district, in which two of its pilots were killed. Again in August, Makalu Air’s Cessna Caravan plunged into Karnali River after reporting engine failure. The aircraft has not been found yet.
There are four single-engine aircraft operating in Nepal. Goma Air has two, while Air Kasthamandap and Makalu Air have one each. Since the Makalu Air’s crash, all the aircraft has been grounded.
“Although there are a number of areas identified for single-engine aircraft for forced-landing, but safe forced-landing is not assured,” said Rajan Pokhrel, deputy director general of the Caan.
“The two crashes have given us sufficient grounds to ban chartered passenger flights as forced-landing risk is higher. It has resulted in serious injury to passengers, death of pilots and substantial damage to the aircraft,” he said, adding the ban will be enforced soon.
Pokhrel said a technical team has been formed to study accidents and incidents involving single-engine aircraft. An earlier report compiled by the Tourism Ministry will also be considered. “The decision may affect a large number of travellers in the remote Karnali, but we don’t have other choices. The operators, however, can operate cargo flights,” he said.
In March, the Tourism Ministry had issued directives to stop registration of new single-engine aircraft and ban passenger charter flights by such planes following the crash-landing of Air Kasthamandap. However, in May, the Supreme Court stayed the decision.
As the decision was taken in haste without considering expert opinions and recommendation by a probe committee formed to look into the crash, the operators had filed a writ in the Supreme Court challenging the government decision.
“However, this time, we have sufficient reasons. Engine failure has occurred twice,” said Pokhrel. “This type of aircraft is safe and typically can glide in the case of engine failure for force-landing, but due to Nepal’s difficult geographical terrain, it cannot ensure passenger’s safety.”
Pokhrel said the problem becomes more glaring during monsoon as the pilots have limited choice to find the force-landing areas.
The government had banned single-engine aircraft in the 1990s too following a series of accidents. The light planes returned to Nepali skies in 2008 after Hisila Yami became tourism minister and took a bold decision to bring them back.
After the government reopened the Nepali skies to single-engine aircraft, Air Kasthamandap became the first to acquire a licence to operate them. It re-introduced the Swiss-made Pilatus Porter in Nepal. The government’s decision was based on the premise that single-engine aircraft were suitable in a mountainous country like Nepal.
The aircraft have a history of more than 50 years in Nepal. A PC-6 Pilatus Porter provided support to the first successful ascent of Dhaulagiri in 1960. Swiss pilot Emil Wick flew a Pilatus Porter in the Himalaya for the first time in 1960s.
Published: 15-08-2016 08:42 The Kathmandu Post
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