Sunday, September 25, 2011

Pilots need special skills to land: experts. Buddha Air Beech 1900D, 9N-AEK, Flight U4-103. Kathmandu, Nepal.


The Tribhuvan airport, the only international airport in Kathmandu, has one of the most difficult runways in terms of terrain, and any deviation from the specifically provided procedures would definitely lead to a dangerous situation, say aviation experts.

The airfield is surrounded by huge hills and any pilot who has to fly to Kathmandu from India needs to take special training under an experienced pilot who has familiarity with the airport in the Nepalese capital.

"If procedures are properly followed, then Kathmandu airport is one airfield where the instrument approach system is very good," said aviation expert and retired pilot A. Ranganathan, who noted that it was too early to comment on the Kathmandu accident.

"Even though reported visibility was 6 km, due to rain and low cloud, the pilot might have thought that he has seen the runway, while it might have just been an illusion," he said.

Noting that there were three air crashes in Nepal in the past year, Mr Ranganathan reiterated that the airfield has good approach system but the pilots should follow procedures properly.

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