India, Nepal to discuss air routes next week

A technical delegation from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) will visit Nepal on June 14 to hold a talk over cross-border airspace issues.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (Caan), these issues have been pending for the last five years.

A member of Air Navigation Services and board member of the AAI, Anil Kumar Dutta is set to lead the Indian team.

As per Kathmandu Post, the two sides will hold discussions on the three key cross-border routes that Nepal has sought from India: Janakpur in the eastern, Nepalgunj in the mid-western and Mahendranagar in the far western regions.

After becoming the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi visited Kathmandu in 2014. Nepal, during Prime Minister Modi's visit, asked India to formally open the new cross-border air routes.

According to the proposal, bi-directional or incoming and outgoing air routes would help facilitate the operation of international flights from Bhairahawa, Pokhara and Nijgadh airports.

A high-level Caan official said, if the discussions yield a positive outcome, they are ready to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India.

After a safety assessment is done by the technical teams of both India and Nepal, a report needs to be published in an aeronautical information publication (AIP) to make the new air paths operational.

During Prime Minister Modi's visit to Nepal on May 11, this issue of new air routes was on the agenda.