MoTCA says Air Arabia should be allowed to fly KTM-KUL
The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA) has concluded that preventing Air Arabia from exercising its Fifth Freedom right to fly on the Kathmandu-Kuala Lumpur sector would be a violation of the Air Service Agreement (ASA). The right of Fifth Freedom allows an airline to carry passengers from its country to another country through a third country.
A meeting between the MoTCA and representatives of the Finance, Law and Foreign ministries and former director generals of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) held on Tuesday decided that Air Arabia should be allowed to utilize its Fifth Freedom right and operate flights which had been barred by the parliamentary International Relation and Human Rights Committee.
Following the recommendation of the concerned ministries, the MoTCA will request the International Relation and Human Rights Committee to withdraw its earlier decision, said Suresh Acharya, joint secretary at the MoTCA.
The MoTCA said that the decision of a constitutional body could not be ignored, and that it would convince the parliamentary committee that its decision could create diplomatic problems between the United Arab Emirates and Nepal besides raising legal issues.
The MoTCA took almost six months to study the legal aspects and reach a decision to permit Air Arabia to fly between Kathmandu and Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital.
On Dec 13, 2010, the parliamentary International Relation and Human Rights Committee had directed the MoTCA to revoke its decision of Dec 2, 2010 to allow the Sharjah-based Air Arabia to link the two cities under its Fifth Freedom right.
The ministry had approved Air Arabia to operate six weekly flights on the Kathmandu-Kuala Lumpur sector. The carrier was scheduled to start service on Dec 16, 2010.
The parliamentary committee had decided not to allow Air Arabia to link Kuala Lumpur following pressure from Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC). NAC had protested that the ministry’s decision would hurt its business on its most lucrative sector. The Kathmandu-Kuala Lumpur sector has emerged as one of the most profitable sectors for NAC over the last three years.
“Being a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and considering Nepal’s open sky policy and bilateral relations with the UAE, the ministry has to abide by the provisions of the ASA,” Acharya said.
Considering the continuous rise in the number of Malaysia-bound migrant workers, NAC doesn’t want to share this sector with other airlines. Air Arabia had also targeted these passengers. A ministry official said that it had a duty to support NAC, but not protect it. The ailing corporation needs capacity building and improvement in its organizational structure in order to be competitive under the open sky policy.
Posted on: 2011-06-03 08:41
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