Nepal airline likely to resume Kathmandu-Kolkata flights

Kolkata: Buddha Air-Nepal’s leading private airline is likely to resume its Kathmandu-Kolkata flights after a gap of six years.

“Namaste Kolkata! The wait is almost over…stay tuned!” the airline wrote in a post on its social media handle, adding: “Kolkata coming soon.” According to Nepal’s media reports, the airline plans to introduce its commercial lights to Kolkata by mid-July.

“We competed with Air India when we flew to this destination 6 years ago. Now that Air India has pulled out, we see a commercial opportunity and have decided to resume the flights,” Rupesh Shrestha, director of Sales and Marketing at Buddha Air, reportedly told the media.

“The airline is actively working towards that end,” he added.

In 2019, Buddha Air operated three weekly flights on the route for nine months but discontinued the service as it had to incur a huge loss.

The company now plans to operate four weekly flights — the same frequency previously maintained by Air India.

The airline operates regular commercial flights to Varanasi and aims to expand to Guwahati, Lucknow and other Indian destinations.

“We see strong potential for two-way trade and tourism in these destinations,” Shrestha reportedly said. The Kathmandu-Kolkata flight takes one hour and 25 minutes.