Himalaya Airlines Enhances Regional Connectivity by Launching Flights to DhakaFriday, July 26th, 2019

July 22 2019, Kathmandu, Nepal

Himalaya Airlines, an international air carrier, entered into the Bangladesh market with its maiden flight to Dhaka, an economic, political and cultural center of the country. The new service offers thrice-weekly flights operating every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday with Airbus A320-214 narrow body aircraft, configured with 8 seats in Premium Economy Class and 150 in Economy Class. With just an hour’s journey, the flight schedule offers a convenient travel option for both business and leisure travelers.

The maiden flight carried high level dignitaries: Mr. Dhan Bahadur Budha, Hon’ble State Minister for Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Her Excellency Ms. Mashfee Binte Shams, Ambassador of Bangladesh to Nepal, Mr. Deepak Raj Joshi, CEO of Nepal Tourism Board along with Mr. Vijay Bahadur Shrestha, VP – Administration of Himalaya Airlines. President, Mr. Zhou Enyong of Himalaya Airlines was also present on the occasion to see off the dignitaries.

As a part of the inaugural celebration, in the presence of all the dignitaries and special invitees from Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Tribhuwan International Airport, Civil Aviation Authority Nepal and other Government offices, the inaugural flight cake cutting ceremony was held at the Radisson Airport Restaurant wherein the airlines received the congratulatory wishes from Her Excellency Ms. Mashfee Binte Shams, the Ambassador of Bangladesh to Nepal.

The inaugural flight H9 678 departed from Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) at 11:33 hours (local time) and touched down at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) at 13:00 hours (local time) on July 22, 2019 carrying a total of 141 passengers. The return flight from Dhaka H9 679 departed at 14:26 hours (local time) on the same day and landed at TIA at 15:44 hours (local time) carrying a total of 104 passengers. Himalaya Airlines has appointed SAir Air BD LTD as their GSA for Bangladesh.

According to Mr. Vijay Shrestha, VP of Himalayan Airlines, the new route is expected not only to increase the inflow of the leisure travelers but will also cater to a large number of Nepali students studying in Bangladesh, especially in the medical field. “For the promotion of Visit Nepal Year 2020 and towards achieving the VNY 2020 arrival targets, we intend to open more international routes soon,” Mr. Shrestha said.

Dhaka is one of the major cities of South Asia housing approximately 8 million citizens. Dhaka – the largest city of the country and most populous in the world is one of the most potential cities for Nepal’s tourism industry. Bangladesh holds an approximately 2 percent share in the total tourist arrivals to Nepal, amounting to 10,590 for the period of January to June 2019. This is almost 25 percent decrease in Bangladeshi visitors’ number compared to that of 2018. With this newly launched connectivity, it is expected that there will be sizeable increase of the Bangladeshi visitors adding its share of contribution to augmenting the numbers for VNY 2020.

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