-KATHMANDU, ANN
The Australian and Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) authorities cleared Nepal Airlines to fly to Canberra, Australia to repatriate Australian tourists stuck in Nepal due to COVID-19 lockdown.
As per the plan, almost 250 people have already registered their names to the Embassy for their intent to fly back to Australia. The carrier will make its maiden flight operating its wide-body A330 aircraft to Canberra, Australia on June 5.
The aircraft will depart the airport in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal at 13:15 Hours, and will land Kuala Lumpur Airport in Malaysia at 20:10 Hours to refuel its tanks before finally proceeding to Canberra, Australia with the total leg of a long journey of 04:40 Hours.
The aircraft will take off at 21:10 Hours Local Time from Kuala Lumpur and land Canberra Airport at 07:20 Hours Local Time the next day. The aircraft will directly fly to Kathmandu while returning back with the total leg of a long journey of 12:25 hours.
The Australian Embassy in Kathmandu had taken initiatives to take the Australians back home upon multiple requests from themselves and other stakeholders which is the third repatriation flight organized by the Embassy.
Earlier, Nepal Airlines while returning back to Nepal from Brisbane and Sydney was not permitted to carry inbound passengers to Nepal from Australia.
However, this time Mahesh Raj Dahal, Nepal’s Ambassador to Australia, stated that “We have taken a special initiative to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and urged the concerned authorities not to return the chartered aircraft empty this time and to repatriate the Nepalis who are in trouble there back to Nepal.”
He said that, they had already discussed this matter with the Foreign Minister on Tuesday afternoon. The high-level committee has already approved the matter and is awaiting for the ministerial decision, said Ambassador Dahal.
