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Caan scrambles to manage ballooning traffic at TIA
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (Caan) is preparing to make it mandatory for airlines to proportionally distribute aircraft among bases other than Kathmandu for overnight stop.The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (Caan) is preparing to make it mandatory for airlines to proportionally distribute aircraft among bases other than Kathmandu for overnight stop. The move is aimed at reducing the growing traffic congestion at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), which has reached an alarming level, raising safety concerns.
Proportional distribution of aircraft will compel a company operating, say, five aircraft, to send at least two airplanes to airports outside of Kathmandu for overnight stop, according to Caan Deputy Director General Rajan Pokhrel.
Pokhrel said discussions are being held with airline companies to enforce the measure. A proposal will be tabled at the Caan’s board for approval soon, Pokhrel added.
The proposed move of the Caan has, however, irked airline operators, as it will raise their operating cost.
A study recently conducted by the aviation regulator found that existing infrastructure of the country’s domestic airports will not be able to accommodate more aircraft for at least two years.
The study on ‘airport capacity declaration’ has recommended complete halt in issuance of new air operator’s certificate (AOC) until the airport infrastructure is upgraded.
On Thursday, Caan officials and aviation stakeholders discussed a number of options to reduce the congestion.
One proposal that was floated was use of common shuttle buses and maintenance equipment by airline companies, as “too many” vehicles and maintenance equipment were creating chaos at TIA, said Pokhrel. “However, airline companies refused to do so.”
The parking bay at TIA is filled to the brim, as most of the airlines have added bigger aircraft despite infrastructure hurdles.
For instance, 2017 saw induction of at least a dozen of aircraft in the domestic sector. Among them, four were 50- to 70-seater Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) series aircraft; three were 72-seater ATR; and one was 58-seater MA60 twin-engine turboprops. The domestic operators have ordered more aircraft for next year, as the number of air passengers is continuously going up. Currently, 46 fixed-wing aircraft are serving the domestic sector.
Although TIA has a capacity to accommodate 17 aircraft on its domestic parking bay, up to 35 aircraft are being accommodated, which is against the standard norms.
But the irony is that airports outside Kathmandu may not be able to accommodate more aircraft as well, as they have hit saturation point, according to Ghanshyam Acharya, spokesperson for the Airlines Operators Association of Nepal.
“Major airports across the country will not be able to provide overnight stop facility to additional aircraft sent from Kathmandu because they don’t have the capacity,” said Acharya.
The Caan has allocated budget to build new domestic parking bays at TIA.
But it will take at least two years to complete them, Acharya said. “It took five months for Caan to pass the annual budget and another three months would be required to invite bids for parking bay construction,” he added. “Indirectly, Caan intends to say no new AOC will be issued for at least two years.”
Airline operators said Caan has also asked them to fly aircraft during the night time to reduce congestion, which is again expected to increase their operation cost.
The Caan charges $15 per flight as weather information fee while operating aircraft during the night time. Besides, aircraft have to fly on instrument flight rules (IFR) at night. IFR is a set of rules which allows properly equipped aircraft to be flown under instrument meteorological conditions as compared to visual flight rules (VFR). Under VFR, pilots operate aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough for them to see the direction of the aircraft with their eyes.
For example, travel time to Biratnagar is 35 minutes under VFR, while under IFR, the time increases to 45-50 minutes. “The extra fuel that is burnt during this process will definitely increase operation cost,” said Acharya. “But we have no choice because
of safety issue. We have to wait until the new infrastructure is built.”
The Caan report shows that there is potential risk of minor and major accidents on the ground due to overcrowding of aircraft.
The growing traffic congestion on the ground and in the air has been adversely putting pressure on air traffic controllers, pilots and airlines operational staffers, the report said. It is also creating safety hazards for passengers and delaying departures and arrivals.