The mechanical test (calibration flights) has been completed at the Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA), which is being prepared to be put into operation from the first week of January 2023. Mechanical testing of the airport was done for a week. However, the report has not arrived yet.
The spokesperson for PRIA, Anup Joshi, informed Republica that the plane was taken to Nepalgunj after the calibration flights at the Pokhara airport. The plane of Thailand’s Aero Thai Company conducted the calibration flight at PRIA. The Thai company started conducting the calibration flights at PRIA from November 21 to November 27.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), the governing body of Nepal’s air services, is currently conducting regular mechanical inspections of Nepal’s main airports, including the one in Pokhara. The plane has now gone to Nepalgunj for the same kind of test. The authority has also tested other airports where IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) flights are carried out by this plane of Aero Thai.
Despite the calibration flights, it is still not clear which airline will fly the first international flight from the airport in January. However, Buddha Air, the leading private sector airline of Nepal, has planned to operate the first international flight connecting Pokhara with India. The process has been advanced for that. Buddha Air has started the process to make the first international flight from PRIA to an Indian city. However, the final decision has not been reached, said a high-ranking employee of CAAN.
