Airlines urged to apply safety standards seriously

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) has urged all airlines to apply safety standards seriously if aviation is to continue to deliver on its immense promise.

Speaking at a programme to mark International Civil Aviation Day here on Friday, MoCTCA secretary Yajna Prasad Gautam said that the Nepali skies are safe but the operation part needed to be reviewed seriously.

“The effects of air accidents on the people and the country’s economy are enormous,” Gautam said. “We cannot mask the current reality of our safety standards,” Gautam added.

“Past mistakes need to be corrected to ensure future aviation growth.” He expressed the need for a collaborative approach among the stakeholders for corrective measures.

Lalit Bikram Shah, former regional director of ICAO-Asia-Pacific, said that the spate of air accidents could create a setback to the Nepali aviation sector, and to end such tragedies, all the stakeholders should demonstrate commitments on safety and standards. “A number of meetings and seminars are organized immediately after any aviation issue arises, but the core problem has never been identified,” he said.

Tri Ratna Manandhar, director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), said that air traffic movement and the entire range of aviation activities had increased five-fold in two decades. However, infrastructure development has not matched that growth, and as a result, the country’s sole international airport has been facing severe congestion and delays. “We have been talking about a second international airport (SIA) for many years, but nothing has happened.”

Manandhar added that a full-fledged SIA could be the only alternative to handle long-haul flights to connect Nepal directly with Europe and the US. “To boost the country’s tourism, we need flights with bigger fleets and direct connectivity to different Western regions.” 

This year, ICAO Day has been organized under the theme of  “Aviation: Your reliable connection to the world”. ICAO’s 2011 global air travel statistics show that airlines around the world carried approximately 2.7 billion people, up 5.1 percent compared to 2010.

source: The Kathmandu post,8 Dec 2012