Aviation service has become an indispensable part of human life. It is no longer a luxury commodity. Air service has become a crucial means of global connectivity, friendship and relations among people and nations. This has substantially enhanced public mobility, trade, tourism, diplomacy, sports and cultural bonds. Both developed and developing nations have benefitted from the aviation industry as it has unlocked the export potential of poor nations. Nepal is also striving to boost her economy, connectivity and diplomatic ties through the medium of aviation transport since the establishment of Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation in 1958. Its first aircraft was 28-seater Dakota of Douglas DC-3 that flew to limited destinations in Nepal and India. The introduction of Nepal Airlines Corporation Act, 1963 allowed the Corporation to spread its wings beyond the national border. It is recalled that Nepal Airlines Corporation operated its services two years before the start of Thai Airways International.

Unlike the Thai aviation sector, Nepal's aviation industry could not make strides owing to several reasons, including unnecessary political interferences, corruption scams and management inefficiency in the past. The country's aviation sector gained ground with the adoption of liberalisation policy after the 1990 political change. It facilitated the entry of private airlines to boost the air travel. Today more than a dozen private airline companies are operating their services making the internal and external air travel faster, competitive and cost-effective. However, the national flag career has been unable to expand its services and capacity as expected. One factor that hampers the sustained growth of the aviation sector is the absence of desired infrastructure, including international airports. The Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), which was originally known as ‘Gaucharan,’ is the country’s sole international airport. As it also serves as the key domestic airport, it has been bearing the burden of both domestic and international travellers.

But, here is good news. The Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) in Lumbini Province and the Pokhara Regional International Airport (PRIA) in Gandaki Province are going to operate soon. According to the news report of this daily, the GBIA is busy completing technical and administrative processes for its operation from May 2022 on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti. On February 17, the airport is scheduled for a calibration flight to make sure that its system including radar, navigation and equipment is up to date. This is necessary to enable an aircraft to pass an inspection. As it is located in Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, GBIA is expected to promote spiritual tourism by fetching a lot of domestic as well as international tourists.

However, experts have stressed making GBIA's security system foolproof given its sensitive location. A few years back, the TIA came under scanner for its failure to control the smuggling of a huge amount of gold destined to pass into India. GBIA lies near the southern border and any security loophole poses a threat to the safety of people and national revenues. Such an inkling is valid owing to open, porous and unregulated border between Nepal and India. But GBIA has installed state-of-the-art security checking equipment and adopted quality standards to plug the potential security holes. It is imperative to set up a competent intelligence unit to monitor the smuggling through international airports. As GBIA's entire system has been digitised, there is lesser chance for any wrongdoers to manipulate its strict security measures.