Shree Airlines

Shree Airlines
IATA ICAO Callsign
N9[1] SHA SHREEAIR
Founded 1999
Hubs Tribhuvan International Airport
Fleet size 12
Destinations 7
Company slogan Fly the new high.
Headquarters Kathmandu
Key people Sudhir Mittal
Website www.shreeairlines.com;

Shree Airlines Pvt. Ltd. is an airline based in Sinamangal, Kathmandu, Nepal, operating chartered helicopter and scheduled fixed wing services following the delivery of three Bombardier aircraft in 2017.[2][3] Shree Airlines also has a helicopter operation sector branded as Shree Air, where its helicopters are certified to carry up to 26 passengers in a one class configuration. The airline also conducts charter and non-charter flights to remote parts of the country and offers cargo charter services.

History

Shree Airlines CRJ at Tribhuvan International Airport (April 2015)

The airline was incorporated in the 1990s and was originally called Air Ananya[4], named after the founder's granddaughter: Ananya Mittal. After a helicopter was burnt at Jiri by Maoists and there were a couple of accidents and helicopters hit by bullets, Chairman and CEO Banwari Lal Mittal consulted an astrologer who suggested changing the name of the airline. Thus Air Ananya became Shree Air. (Shree means auspicious beginning).[5]

Shree Air is the largest operator of helicopters in Nepal with a fleet of Mi-17 helicopters. These helicopters are capable of carrying up to 4000 kg of cargo or 26 people. Shree Airlines operates both cargo and passenger flights.

Nepal’s then largest helicopter operator Shree Air diversied into fixed-wing operations by bringing in three jets in 2016 with plans to operate scheduled domestic flights out of Tribhuvan International Airport and investing NPRs 2 billion on its expansion project, these services are operated under the brand name Shree Airlines.[2][4] The airline has acquired two Bombardier CRJ200 and one Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft and launched fixed wing services on 11 August 2017 using one of the Bombardier CRJ200 aircraft.[6]

Services

Passenger cabin

Humanitarian and UN peacekeeping flights

Shree Airlines operated flights for the World Food Program and the Nepal Food Corporation. These flights delivered food to the hungry and needy in the hard-to-reach parts of Nepal. Shree Airlines has delivered over 8,000,000 kilograms of food to the Nepalese population.[7]

Shree Airlines also operated long term charter flights for the United Nations, in support of peacekeeping operations in Uganda from 2008 to 2014. The UN cancelled the contract after the ICAO attached the label "significant safety concern" to all Nepalese Airlines. Four Mi-17 helicopters were left abandoned in Uganda after the cancelation of the mission, as the airline did not find it viable to bring the machines back to Nepal.[8] As of September 2016, two Helicopters are still in Aftice, while two more helicopters are currently being overhauled.[4]

Religious tourism

Shree Airlines operates helicopter flights to Hilsa in north-west Nepal, which is at the northern border, and is the start point for the Mansarovar and Mount Kailash pilgrimage. The Airline operates charter flights to Muktinath, a popular pilgrimage destination in mid-Nepal.[9]

Destinations

Shree Airlines operates scheduled domestic flights to the following destinations as of July, 2018.

DestinationAirportNotes
BhadrapurBhadrapur Airport
BhairahawaGautam Buddha Airport
BiratnagarBiratnagar Airport
DhangadhiDhangadhi Airport
KathmanduTribhuvan International AirportHub
NepalgunjNepalgunj Airport
RajbirajRajbiraj Airport[10]

Fleet

The Shree Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of July 2018):

Shree Airlines Fleet
Aircraft In Fleet Orders Passengers Notes
C Y Total
Bombardier CRJ200ER 2 — — 50 50 [11]
Bombardier CRJ700 2 — — 70 70 [12]
Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 — 3 — 78 78 [13]
Mil Mi-17 6 — — 24 24 Two helicopters are currently abandoned in Uganda after serving in a UN mission.
Eurocopter AS350 B3e 2 — — 5 5
Total 12 3

Accidents and Incidents

  • On February 2, 2018, a Shree Airlines Bombardier CRJ200ER met a minor incident at Gautam Buddha Airport, Bhairahawa. The wing tip of the aircraft was damaged as the aircraft hit the wing of a Yeti Airlines Jetstream 41 at parking bay of the airport.[16]

References

  1. ↑ "Airline and Airport Codes". IATA. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Shree Airlines gets 2nd Bombardier jet". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  3. ↑ "Shree Airlines Website". Shree Airlines. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 "Shree Airlines to diversify into fixed-wing operations". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  5. ↑ New Business Age July 2003
  6. ↑ "Shree Airlines". Airliner World (October 2017): 15. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  7. ↑ "Shree Airlines Joins Bombardier's Family of CRJ Series Aircraft Operators". Market Wired. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  8. ↑ "Shree seeks govt help revive charter deal". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  9. ↑ "Religious Tour". Shree Airlines. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  10. ↑ "Shree Airlines preparing Rajbiraj flights starting from June 24". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  11. ↑ "Global Airline Guide 2017 (Part One)". Airliner World (October 2017): 22. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  12. ↑ "Shree Airlines receives additional Bombardier CRJ700 "9N-AMO"". Aviation Nepal. 19 June 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  13. ↑ https://www.aviationnepal.com/shree-airlines-required-to-wait-longer-for-dash-8-q400-aoc-approval/
  14. ↑ "A conservation catastrophe for Nepal". BBC. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  15. ↑ "Teams recover Nepal crash bodies". BBC. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  16. ↑ "Shree Airlines' CRJ200 and Yeti Airlines' had a minor collision at Gautam Buddha Airport". Aviation Nepal. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
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