Kathmandu. Five Chinese aircraft owned by Nepal Airlines Corporation have been parked at Tribhuvan Airport for a long time. The corporation’s two useless MA-60 and three Y-12 model aircraft have been parked at Tribhuvan Airport since 2020.
The board of directors of the Nepal Airlines Corporation has not been able to take any decision on what to do with the Chinese aircraft. The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation has also not been able to give any instructions to the corporation regarding these aircraft.
It has been parked at the airport since 2020, citing the high operating costs of Chinese-made aircraft. The corporation has been facing unnecessary expenses due to parking and other fees for aircraft that have been parked at the airport for four years.
In 2022, the corporation had invited international bids twice to lease the aircraft. However, this attempt failed after not receiving the expected offers.
Similarly, in 2023, an American company evaluated 5 aircraft for a total of Rs 220 million in preparation for a sales campaign. The airline refused to sell the aircraft, saying that the proposed price was too low due to the purchase price and condition of the aircraft.
The Chinese government had supplied these 5 aircraft through the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China. When selling the aircraft, China provided a total of Rs 6.66 billion as a grant and the remaining amount as a soft loan.
The 7-year grace period provided by China for payment of principal and interest ended in 2021. The airline and the Nepal government have not made any payments and the Chinese have not even requested for it. Nepal Airlines has to repay about Rs 50 billion in loans to various creditors including the Employees Provident Fund, the Government of Nepal, and others.
