Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) on Thursday dispatched its Boeing 757 to Kolkata to pick up aviation turbine fuel to recharge the depleted reserves of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) amid worries that continued shortages due to the blockade by India could ground domestic carriers.

NAC officials said that the Boeing made two roundtrips to Kolkata. The first flight landed at 4:15pm at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) on Thursday. In 1989 too, the then Royal Nepal Airlines had made a similar airlift from Bangladesh to keep the kitchen fires burning after the southern neighbour sealed the border.

NAC spokesperson Ram Hari Sharma said that after the Boeing was defueled, it would be sent back to conduct its regular services on the Kuala Lumpur and Doha sectors on Thursday night. He said that a Boeing 757 could carry 33 tonnes of fuel in the tanks in its wings. Kathmandu to Kolkata is a 45-minute flight. “The jet requires 7.5 tonnes of fuel for the roundtrip,” he said.

“Defueling the aircraft will yield at least 20 tonnes after leaving enough in its tanks to conduct its regular flights,” he added. “This will help NOC to boost its reserves. We can airlift more fuel as per the government’s order and need.” The daily fuel requirement of domestic carriers amounts to 50 tonnes. Sharma said that NAC planes would not be transporting other fuels like petrol, liquefied petroleum gas and diesel.