Sita Air

Sita Air is an airline based in Kathmandu, Nepal.[3] The airline was established in 2003.The airline's main base is Tribhuvan International Airport with hubs at Pokhara Airport and Nepalgunj Airport.[4]

Sita Air
IATA ICAO Callsign
- STA[lower-alpha 1] -
Founded2000
HubsTribhuvan International Airport
Secondary hubsPokhara Airport, Nepalgunj Airport
Fleet size4
Destinations13
HeadquartersSinamangal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Key people
Websitewww.sitaair.com.np

History
Sita Air Dornier 228 parked-up at Tribhuvan International Airport (February 2013).

The airline gained its air operators certificate in 2000, and was established in October 2000, but was unable to operate until 2003 due to political unrest in Nepal.[5] Operations started on 6 February 2003 with a single Dornier 228; a second aircraft was added in April 2003.[6]

In August 2014, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal barred the airline from carrying passengers due to safety concerns and failing to meet international standards. The airline was allowed to continue operating cargo flights.[7] However, by 2016, the airline was allowed to operate passenger services again.[8]

In 2016, the airline was sold to Biratnagar-based Agrawal Group for NPRs 550,000,000.[9]

In 2017, Sita Air bought two more Dornier 228 aircraft from Simrik Airlines.[10]

Destinations

Sita Air currently operates services to the following domestic destinations (as of May 2019):[1]

City Airport Notes Refs
BajuraBajura Airport
ChainpurBajhang AirportTerminated[11]
ChandannathJumla Airport
ChaurjahariChaurjahari AirportTerminated[12]
DhangadhiDhangadhi AirportTerminated[13]
JanakpurJanakpur AirportTerminated[14]
JomsomJomsom Airport
JuphalDolpa Airport
KathmanduTribhuvan International AirportHub
LuklaTenzing–Hillary Airport
ManthaliRamechhap AirportSeasonal
NepalgunjNepalgunj Airport
PhapluPhaplu AirportSeasonal
PokharaPokhara Airport
RaraTalcha Airport
SimikotSimikot Airport
TulsipurDang AirportTerminated[15]
TumlingtarTumlingtar AirportSeasonal

Fleet

The Sita Air fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of May 2019):[16]

Sita Air fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Notes
P Y Total
Dornier 228 4 — 0 19 19
Total 4 —

Accidents and incidents
Wreckage of Flight 601 immediately after impact
  • 30 September 2004 – A Sita Air Dornier 228 crashlanded at Lukla Airport, causing the airport to be closed for several days.[17]
  • 12 October 2010 – A Sita Air Dornier 228 hit a wall beside the runway in Lukla Airport as its brake system did not work properly.[18] The engine inlet of the aircraft was damaged heavily.[18] The aircraft was attempting to land at Lukla airport. It was lifted by helicopter to Kathmandu for repairs and put back to service.[19] This same aircraft went on to have another crash landing accident on Simkot Airport in 2013.[20][21]
  • 28 September 2012 – Sita Air Flight 601, a Dornier 228 crashed just after takeoff from Kathmandu International Airport. All 16 passengers and 3 crew on board were killed. The flight was bound for Lukla.[22][23] An investigation report into the crash concluded that it was caused by passenger and cargo payload that exceeded the aircraft's maximum takeoff weight.[24][25]
  • 1 June 2013 – A Sita Air Dornier 228 sustained substantial damage upon landing accident at Simikot Airport.[20] There were no injuries among the five passengers and two crew members.[26] The left hand main landing gear broke and the Dornier 228 came to rest on the side of the runway. The no. 1 propeller, left hand wing and underside of the fuselage sustained substantial damage.[20][21] The aircraft had to be airlifted to Kathmandu by a helicopter.[27]
  • 23 April 2017 – Sita Air Flight 617, a Dornier 228 met a minor incident at Phaplu Airport. The wing tip of theaircraft of was damaged as the aircraft hit the wall on the apron at Phaplu Airport.[28]
  • 20 February 2018 – Sita Air Flight 601, a Dornier 228 was forced to make an emergency diversion after the aircraft experienced abnormal pressure reading on the engine during the flight to Lukla from Kathmandu which forced the flight crew to carry out the precautionary engine shut down procedure; Shutting down the right engine.[29]

Notes
  1. Sita Air has no registered ICAO code allocated, but uses 'STA' on scheduling, ticketing and baggage (as an official ICAO code would be used). However, officially, the ICAO Code 'STA' is allocated to Star Aviation UK.[1]

References
  1. "Flight Schedule". Sita Air. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  2. https://www.sitaair.com.np/about-us/
  3. "Contact Information Archived 2011-11-11 at the Wayback Machine." Sita Air. Retrieved on 29 December 2011. "Sinamangal Ward No: 9 Kathmandu, Nepal"
  4. "Sita Air". Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  5. Flight International 12–18 April 2005
  6. "Sita Air". Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  7. "Caan clips airlines' wings for violating safety rules". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on 12 October 2017.
  8. "2016; Prosperous year for Domestic airlines in Nepal". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  9. "Sita Air Sold To Agrawal Group For Nrs. 55 Crore". Aviation Nepal. 1 September 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  10. "Simrik Airlines left with fewer flights". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  11. "Destinations : Bajhang". Sita Air. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016.
  12. "Destinations : Dang". Sita Air. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016.
  13. "Destinations : Dhangadi". Sita Air. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016.
  14. "Destinations : Janakpur". Sita Air. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016.
  15. "Destinations : Dang". Sita Air. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016.
  16. Sita Air Fleet Archived 2014-11-01 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 4 March 2011
  17. "Lukla airport still closed". Nepali Times. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  18. Aaron Harrington (2012-06-18), Almost Fatality at Lukla Airport Nepal 2010, retrieved 2016-12-27
  19. "Registration Details For 9N-AHB (Sita Air) Dornier 228-202 - PlaneLogger". www.planelogger.com. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  20. "ASN Aircraft accident Dornier 228-202K 9N-AHB Simikot Airport (IMK)". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  21. "Ujjwal Acharya on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  22. "British, Chinese among 19 dead in Nepal plane crash". Reuters. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  23. "28 September 2012 - Nepal plane crash kills all 19 on board: police (UPDATED) - Foreign - My Sinchew". Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  24. "Probe blames overloading for 2012 Sita Air crash". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  25. "ASN Aircraft accident Dornier 228-202 9N-AHA Kathmandu-Tribhuvan Airport (KTM)". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  26. "Sita Air aircraft meets with accident in Humla‚ no casualty - The Himalayan Times". The Himalayan Times. Retrieved 2016-12-27.
  27. Gainju R (2013-10-13), Helicopter air lifting the plane, retrieved 2016-12-27
  28. "Sita Air Dornier 9N-AHR meets an incident in Phaplu Airport". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  29. "Sita Air Dornier 228 lands safely at TIA after right engine shutdown". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
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