Chinese aircraft manufacturer infringes Nepal’s aeronautical regulations

Kathmandu :The Chinese aircraft manufacturer has violated Nepal’s aeronautical regulations as there was unauthorised display of Nepal’s aircraft registration marks on aircraft parked at Harbin based aircraft factory.
The three Y12e aircraft painted with NAC livery, the national flag and the Nepali call signs, 9N AKV, 9N AKU and 9N AKT was parked at the airport in Harbin, where the manufacturer is based, reports The Himalayan Times.

Joint Secretary Suresh Acharya from the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said the Chinese manufacturer claimed that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had already issued a temporary certificate of registration (COR) authorising it to display the Nepali registration marks on these aircraft.

CAAN Director General Sanjeev Gautam refuted Chinese manufacturer’s claim of having temporary certificate of registration and said there was no provision to issue temporary CO R to any aircraft.

Joint Secretary Acharya added that CAAN should take action against Chinese manufacturers if they had violated international standards on display of another state’s registration signs.

As per the international norms, any aircraft after production is issued a certificate of registration by the state of manufacture without which it cannot take to the skies, even for flight testing purposes.

The approved procedure for aircraft registration by CAAN requires a formal approval by the director general on the memo for registration before the registration marks can be displayed on the aircraft.

Any violation is punishable as per provisions of CAAN Act.

This incident exposes the clout exercised by Chinese manufacturers in the corridors of power in Nepal, let alone CAAN, an aviation expert said.(ANI)