TIA to operate 21 hours a day from tomorrow

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Kathmandu, May 20 (RSS): The government is set to open Tribhuvan International Airport, the only international airport of the country, 21 hours a day from Monday. The operation period is from 6:00 am to 3:00 am. This aims to manage and facilitate passengers, make international flights more effective and minimise problems like obstruction due to minor general plane accidents and the obligation to hold aeroplanes in the air for long due to various reasons, said a government official talking to Rastriya Samachar Samiti.
Earlier the airport was operational for 18 hours a day (from 6:00 am to 12:00 am).
This new measure was given top priority in the 100 days action plan forwarded by Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Rabindra Adhikari, and Adhikari earlier himself has held consultations with concerned sectors and experts time and again in this regard.
The airport sees approximately 400 takeoffs and landings a day both national and international. The airport has a capacity of managing 1,300 passengers a day, but is forced to deal with around 2,500 passengers at present during peak hours.