International flights start from Bhairahawa

By Our Correspondent

Bhairahawa, Nov. 10: Four airlines have started international flights from Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA). 

Two and a half years after the opening of the airport, four domestic and foreign airlines companies have started international flights from the GBIA.

After the start of many international flights at once, there is happiness among the tourism entrepreneurs here.

Spokesperson of the GBIA Binod Rawat said that Jazeera Airlines and Fly Dubai started flights from here on Saturday. Jazeera will fly Bhairahawa-Kuwait three days a week, he said.

Jazeera, which started flying from here two years ago with the inauguration of Gautam Buddha Airport, suspended the flight citing technical reasons after the onset of winter. 

Now, Jazeera Airlines will fly three days a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. According to the airport, the Jazeera flight will land at Bhairahawa at 7:30 am and will fly to Kuwait from here at 8:30 am. The Thai Air Asia airlines, which started flying on November 3, landed at Bhairahawa for the second time on Friday afternoon.

A Thai AirAsia flight arrived carrying seven passengers on Friday returned with 32 passengers. From next week, Thai AirAsia is scheduled to flight on Monday and Thursday.

According to Rawat, as per the schedule approved by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, the Thai AirAsia aircraft will land here at 12:30 pm and it is scheduled to return to Thailand with passengers after 1.15 pm.

Similarly, the Fly Dubai has started daily flights from Saturday. Rawat said that Fly Dubai will fly from here seven days a week. According to the flight schedule approved by the CAAN, Fly Dubai aircraft will land at Bhairahawa every day at 1:45 pm. The flight will take off from here at 2:45 pm.

Nepal Airlines was scheduled to start the Kathmandu-Bhairahawa-Dubai flight from Friday, but it was cancelled. 

The Nepal Airlines is scheduled to fly four days a week on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. 

The flight of Nepal Airlines will land at Bhairahawa at 10:20 pm from Kathmandu. After remaining here for half an hour, the flight to Dubai is scheduled, said Rawat. The Kuala Lumpur-Kathmandu-Bhairahwa flight, which Nepal Airlines has been operating once a week on Tuesdays, will continue.

After the start of regular international flights, Gautam Buddha International Airport has started to get crowded with passengers and general public. 

The then Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba inaugurated the airport in May 2022. Soon after, offices such as customs, immigration, transportation, commercial banks and warehouse management companies came into operation at the airport. Nepal Police and Army were deployed for security management. A health desk is operational at the airport. Now Nepal Airlines Corporation has taken over ground handling here.