Kathmandu, Sept 11: After flying in the Nepali skies for 16 years Buddha Air’s ATR-42 ‘9N-AIN’ aircraft went into retirement.
“We are bidding farewell to this aircraft, as the first ATR to compete with a full life of 70,000 cycles and that too through commercial passenger operations,” Buddha Air Executive Chair Birendra Bahadur Basnet said while making an emotional statement at the farewell ceremony held at Tribhuvan International Airport on Tuesday.
President Basnet asserted that Buddha Air’s technical and operation team is no less than that of developed countries in the maintenance and flight operations of ATR aircraft.
Buddha Air had expanded its operations with two ATR-42 aircraft in 2008, and now has 18 remaining to serve as the company with the largest fleet of aircrafts in the country. The company now has three ATR-42 with 47 seats and 15 ATR aircraft with 70 seats.
According to the company, the ATR aircraft that has been put out of service today served 1.8 million passengers through 44,477 flights in 16 years. It had a total capacity of 45 seats.
The outer part of the plane that was removed from regular duty today will be handed over to the regulator Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal while the parts inside the plane will be used for the repair of other aircrafts. #BuddhaAir
