Private carrier Buddha Air on Tuesday announced the addition of another 72-seater ATR 72 to its fleet by mid-June, taking its total fleet size to 11. The carrier said it has already received permission from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal to bring the aircraft. The aircraft has been issued 9N-AMU registration mark, Buddha Air said in a statement.

As the upgradation of airport in Rajbiraj is nearing completion, the carrier has planned to conduct the test flight with its ATR aircraft. However, the carrier has drawn attention of the concerned authority to provide refueling facility in the airport. With the planned addition, Buddha’s total fleet size would grow to 11 aircraft-six ATR 72, three 42-seater ATR 42 and two 19-seater Beechcraft 1900D.

2017 remained yet another bumper year for domestic airlines, as they recorded 39.47 percent jump in domestic air passenger movement following addition of new aircraft to cater to the growing number of air travellers.

Domestic airline companies saw movement of a record 2.45 million passengers in 2017, as travellers chose to fly rather than drive over bone-jarring national highways. The number of air travellers recorded in 2017 is 693,794 more than in 2016, according to Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). Airlines-wise, Buddha Air led the pack in movement of passengers in 2017. Buddha recorded 25.44 percent growth in passenger number last year, flying 1.26 million passengers—the highest number so far by an individual airline in Nepal’s aviation industry.