Kathmandu, September 21
Nepal Airlines has cancelled its scheduled Kathmandu-Narita and Narita-Kathmandu flights for Tuesday as one of its wide-body aircraft remains grounded in Japan for repairs.
The airline had planned to bring the aircraft back to Kathmandu after completing maintenance in Narita. However, the repair work was not completed as planned, forcing the cancellation of the flights.
The cancellation has left hundreds of passengers who had booked tickets for travel during the festive season in uncertainty.
Nepal Airlines has another wide-body aircraft, which has been taken to Italy for scheduled maintenance.
The national flag carrier operates four international aircraft — two wide-body and two narrow-body planes.
With both wide-body aircraft currently grounded, the airline has so far been forced to cancel nearly a dozen flights, resulting in losses running into millions of rupees.
Nepal Airlines uses its narrow-body aircraft mainly for shorter international routes, while wide-body aircraft are required for long-haul destinations such as Japan.
The airline has yet to restore both wide-body aircraft to service, raising concerns over further flight disruptions during the upcoming festive travel season.
