Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) had raised the price of ATF by Rs 10 per liter, making it Rs 100 per liter last week. Domestic carriers had raised fuel surcharge by up to Rs 180 in February, following rise in ATF prices by Rs 10 per liter. [break]
“Hike in fuel surcharge this time is a bit high, as we hadn´t revised fuel surcharge when NOC raised ATF price in March,” said Parashar Jung Pandey, Buddha Air´s senior manager-sales and marketing.
“We have increased fuel surcharge by 20 percent.”
Officials of domestic carriers said they had not revised fuel surcharge when NOC raised ATF price by Rs 10 per liter in March. Price of ATF has increased by Rs 40 per liter, as compared to the price of December last year.
After the hike, normal fare for Simara will cost Rs 2,375. Similarly, normal fare for Dhangadhi will now cost Rs 9,030.
“We were left with no option, as fuel is one of the major components of our operating cost,” Pandey added.
Apart from normal fares, airlines also offer cheaper fares in different names like Charlie (Buddha), Bravo (Guna), Economic (Agni), Halka Greeen (Yeti) and so on.
As per existing regulations, airlines can increase fuel surcharge when ATF price is increased by more than Rs 4 per liter. Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) reviews airfare every two years on the basis of inflation rate, fuel price and maintenance cost, among others.
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