Yeti Airlines

Yeti Airlines Pvt. Ltd. (Nepali: यती एअरलाइन्स) is an airline based in Kathmandu, Nepal. The airline was established in May 1998 and received its air operator's certificate on 17 August 1998. Since 2019, Yeti Airlines is the first carbon neutral airline in Nepal and South Asia.[5] It is the parent company of Tara Air. As of 2022, Yeti Airlines was the second-largest domestic carrier in Nepal, after Buddha Air.[6]

Yeti Airlines
यती एयरलायन्स
IATA ICAO Callsign
YT NYT YETI AIRLINES
FoundedMay 1998 (1998-05)
AOC #037/2004[1]
HubsTribhuvan International Airport
Focus cities
Frequent-flyer programSky Club[2]
SubsidiariesTara Air
Fleet size5[3]
Destinations8
HeadquartersKathmandu, Nepal
Key peopleLhakpa Sonam Sherpa, Chairman[4]
Websitewww.yetiairlines.com
Yeti Airlines Twin Otter at Pokhara Airport (April 2000)
Yeti Airlines Jetstream 41 at Pokhara Airport (2019)
Yeti Airlines ATR 72-500 at Gautam Buddha Airport

History

Yeti Airlines was established by Ang Tshering Sherpa in May 1998 and received its Air Operators Certificate on 17 August 1998. It started operations with two de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otters.

In 2009, Yeti Airlines established the subsidiary Tara Air to which it outsourced its STOL operations to airports in the rural and mountainous airports in Nepal and transferred its respective aircraft, DHC-6 Twin Otters and Dornier 228s to Tara Air.[7][8]

In late 2023, it was reported that Asian Life Insurance would take over a 49% stake of Yeti Airlines and that the company would issue an IPO.[9]

International operations

In 2007, Yeti Airlines launched Fly Yeti as a joint venture with Air Arabia.[10] Due to political uncertainty, the airline ceased its operations in 2008.[11]

In 2013, the European Commission banned all Nepalese airlines from entering the European airspace. This restriction is still in place as of June 2021 and specifically also names Yeti Airlines.[12][13]

In 2014, Yeti Airlines launched Himalaya Airlines, another international joint venture, this time with Chinese Tibet Airlines.[14]

Yeti World

The parent company of Yeti Airlines, Yeti World, also encompasses other touristic ventures, including hotels and resorts and further airline companies, namely Air Dynasty and Altitude Air.[15][16]

In December 2019, Yeti World made headlines, as it was involved in a corruption case around Prime Minister K.P. Oli.[16]

Destinations

Yeti Airlines offers scheduled flights to the following destinations (as of July 2023):[17]

DestinationAirportNotes
KathmanduTribhuvan International AirportHub
Bajhang[18]Bajhang AirportTerminated
Bajura[18]Bajura AirportTerminated
BhadrapurBhadrapur Airport
BhairahawaGautam Buddha Airport
BharatpurBharatpur AirportTerminated
BiratnagarBiratnagar Airport
Birendranagar[18]Surkhet AirportTerminated
Dang[18]Dang AirportTerminated
DhangadhiDhangadhi AirportTerminated
JanakpurJanakpur Airport
Jitpursimara[19]Simara Airport
Jomsom[18]Jomsom AirportTerminated
Jumla[18]Jumla AirportTerminated
Lamidanda[18]Lamidanda AirportTerminated
Lukla[18]Lukla AirportTerminated
Manang[18]Manang AirportTerminated
Meghauli[18]Meghauli AirportTerminated
NepalgunjNepalgunj Airport
Phaplu[18]Phaplu AirportTerminated
Pokhara Pokhara Airport Terminated
Pokhara International Airport
Rara[18]Rara AirportTerminated
Rukum[18]Rukumkot AirportTerminated
Rukum[18]Rukum Salle AirportTerminated
Rumjatar[18]Rumjatar AirportTerminated
Sanphebagar[18]Sanphebagar AirportTerminated
Taplejung[18]Taplejung AirportTerminated
TumlingtarTumlingtar AirportTerminated

Yeti Airlines also operates the one-hour-long Everest Express scheduled mountain sightseeing flights from Kathmandu to Mount Everest[20] and Annapurna Express mountain sightseeing flights from Pokhara to Annapurna Massif.[21]

Codeshare agreements

Yeti Airlines has a codeshare agreement with its subsidiary Tara Air.[22]

Fleet
Yeti Airlines ATR 72-500
A former Yeti Airlines BAe Jetstream 41 in 2013.
A former Yeti Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter in 2001

Current fleet

The Yeti Airlines fleet consists of these aircraft (as of January 2023):[23][3]

Aircraft In fleet Orders Passengers Notes
C Y Total
ATR 72-500
5[3]
—
 — 72 72 One of formerly six aircraft[3] lost as Yeti Airlines Flight 691.[24]
Two were leased from Nordic Aviation Capital[25][26]
Total 5 —

Former fleet

Yeti Airlines also formerly operated these types of aircraft:

Yeti Airlines historical fleet since 1998
Aircraft Introduced Retired Notes
BAe Jetstream 41 2007[27] 2021[28]
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 1998 2009 Transferred to subsidiary Tara Air
Dornier 228 2009 2009 Transferred to subsidiary Tara Air
Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante[29] 1999 ?
Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia[30] 2000 2001
Harbin Y-12[31] 1995 2001 Stored indefinitely at Tribhuvan International Airport[32]
Saab 340B[33] 2004 2007 Stored indefinitely at Tribhuvan International Airport[34]

Accidents and incidents
  • 25 May 2004 – Yeti Airlines Flight 117: A Yeti Airlines DHC-6 Twin Otter (registration 9N-AFD) cargo flight crashed into a hill on approach to Lukla. All three crew members were killed.[35]
  • 21 June 2006 – 2006 Yeti Airlines Twin Otter Crash: A DHC-6 Twin Otter registered as 9N-AEQ was destroyed in a rice paddy on approach to Jumla, killing all six passengers and the crew of three.[36]
  • 8 October 2008 – Yeti Airlines Flight 101: A DHC-6 was destroyed upon landing at Lukla, killing all 18 passengers and two of the three crew. The captain was the only survivor.[37]
  • 24 September 2016 – Yeti Airlines Flight 893: A BAe Jetstream 41 registration 9N-AIB en route from Kathmandu to Bhairahawa overran the runway while landing at Gautam Buddha Airport. None of the 29 passengers or crew of three were hurt, but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.[38]
  • 12 July 2019 – Yeti Airlines Flight 422: An ATR 72-500 (registration 9N-AMM) en route from Nepalgunj Airport to Tribhuvan International Airport suffered a runway excursion while landing. All 68 people on board, including the crew of four, evacuated the aircraft safely. Two of them received minor injuries and were taken to the hospital. A wet runway during the rainy season could have been the cause.[39]
  • 29 July 2022 – Yeti Airlines Flight 672: An ATR 72-500 (registration 9N-ANG) en route from the Pokhara International Airport to Tribhuvan International Airport with 45 people on board, was climbing out of Pokhara when the left hand engine (PW127) failed prompting the crew to shut the engine down and return to Pokhara for a safe landing about 6 minutes after departure. The airport reported the left hand engine failed immediately after the aircraft became airborne.[40]
  • 15 January 2023 – Yeti Airlines Flight 691: Yeti Airlines ATR 72-500 (registration 9N-ANC) en route from Tribhuvan International Airport to Pokhara International Airport crashed near Gharipatan, Pokhara. No one survived among the 68 passengers and four crew members on board, making it the deadliest plane crash in Nepal since 1992.[41][42][43][44]

Trivia

Yeti Airlines is the current shirt sponsor of Kathmandu-based football club Himalayan Sherpa Club, who currently play in Nepal's highest football league, the Martyr's Memorial A-Division League.[45]

References
  1. "Civil Aviation Report 2017" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  2. "Sky Club". Yeti Airlines. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  3. Yeti Airlines Fleet Details and History planespotters.net, accessdate 15 January 2023
  4. "Management Team of Yeti Air". Webportal of Yeti Air. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  5. "Yeti Airlines becomes Nepal's first carbon neutral airline". UNDP. 2 May 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  6. Prasain, Sangam (24 February 2023). "Domestic air traffic soars, hits a record 4.46m flyers". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  7. "History". Yeti Airlines. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  8. "Tara Air – Biggest Airline in Nepalese Mountains - Helping Develop the Rural Nepal". Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  9. Maharjan, Surendra (28 September 2023). "Yeti Airlines welcoming Asian Life as Partner with 49% stake in response to the escalating Financial Crisis". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  10. "Yeti Airlines goes international, Orient Thai comes to Nepal". The Himalayan Times. 22 January 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  11. "Annual Report 2008" (PDF). Air Arabia. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  12. "EU bans all airlines from Nepal to fly into the 28 nation bloc". The Times of India. 5 December 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  13. "LEGAL NOTICE" (PDF). European Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 February 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  14. "Himalaya conducts 'proving' flight". The Kathmandu Post. 27 February 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  15. "About us". Yeti World. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  16. "How Yeti Group benefited from its connections with PM Oli". Republica News. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  17. "Scheduled Flights". Yeti Airlines. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  18. "INTERACTIVE MAP". Yeti Airlines. Archived from the original on 17 February 2008. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  19. "Yeti Airlines scheduled to fly Simara after 12 years". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  20. "Everest Express". Yeti Airlines. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  21. "Annapurna Express". Yeti Airlines. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  22. "Lukla Tenzing Hillary Airport". FlightRadar24. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
  23. "Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One)". Airliner World. October 2019: 21.
  24. Magramo, Asha Thapa,Kathleen (15 January 2023). "At least 32 killed as Yeti Airlines flight crashes in Nepal's Pokhara". CNN. Retrieved 15 January 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. "NAC delivered one ATR 72-500, MSN 876, to Yeti Airlines on lease". Nordic Aviation Capital. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  26. "Yeti Airlines welcomes 3rd ATR 72-500 into its fleet". Aviation Nepal. 18 September 2018.
  27. "पाँच जेटस्ट्रिमबाट फेरिँदैछन् यतीको लोगो, यही साता गुण एयरलाइन्सलाई हस्तान्तरण गरिँदै" (in Nepali). Bizmandu. 29 June 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  28. "Guna Airlines preparing for flights with Jetstream 41". Avia Tech Channel. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  29. Yeti Airlines Calendar 2075. Kathmandu: Yeti Airlines.
  30. "REGISTRATION SEARCH FOR C-GFKB". Planelogger. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  31. "REGISTRATION SEARCH FOR 9N-AFO". Planelogger. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  32. "YETI AIRLINES - FLEET". Planelogger. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  33. airfleets.net - Saab 340 in the history of Yeti Airlines retrieved 15 January 2023
  34. "REGISTRATION SEARCH FOR 9N-AHL". Planelogger. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  35. "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 9N-AFD Lukla". Flight Safety Foundation. 25 May 2004. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  36. Accident description for 9N-AEQ at the Aviation Safety Network
  37. "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 9N-AFE Lukla-Tenzing-Hillary Airport (LUA)". Flight Safety Foundation. 8 October 2008. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  38. "Yeti Airlines 9N-AIB Escaped from an accident". Aviation Nepal. 24 September 2016.
  39. "Yeti Airlines aircraft skids off runway". The Himalayan Times. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  40. "Pokhara plane crash: A look at the long history of aircraft incidents in Nepal". INDIA TODAY. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  41. "Nepal Plane With 72 On Board Crashes, 41 Bodies Found, More Feared Dead". NDTV.com. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  42. "Yeti Airlines aircraft crashes in Pokhara". The Kathmandu Post. 15 January 2023. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  43. "Nepal: Passenger plane crashes on runway of Pokhara Airport, 16 killed". mint. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  44. Twitter
  45. "HSC, Yeti Airlines renew sponsorship deal". The Himalayan Times. 17 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.

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