Summit Air, formerly known as Goma Air, is an airline based in

Kathmandu, Nepal Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 m ...

. The airline operates from

short takeoff and landing A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a fixed-wing aircraft that can takeoff/land on short runways. Many STOL-designed aircraft can operate on airstrips with harsh conditions (such as high altitude or ice). STOL aircraft, including tho ...

airstrips in the Western parts of Nepal. The airline received the first of two Let 410 aircraft, financed by the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Export Bank., in October 2014, and initially only used them on flights to

Lukla Lukla ( ) is a small town in the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu rural municipality of the Solukhumbu District in the Koshi Province of northeastern Nepal. Situated at above sea level, it is a popular place for visitors to the Himalayas near Mount Everest ...

and

Jomsom Jomsom (), (Ward No. 4 of Gharpajhong Rural Municipality) also known as Dzongsam (New Fort), is the centre of Gharapjhong rural municipality in Mustang district and a former independent village development committee situated at an altitude of ...

History

The airline was founded as ''Goma Air'' in February 2011. It began to operate using Cessna Grand Caravan 208 B aircraft. In October 2014, the airline acquired one Let 410 UVP-E20 aircraft, which was the first aircraft of this type to be operated in Nepal. The airline is the only one to use Nepalgunj Airport as the main hub of operation and focuses on operating out of that base. On 13 March 2017, the airline officially changed its name to ''Summit Air''. In 2014, Summit Air signed a deal with Fishtail Air with the aim of enhancing Nepal's tourism. Both Airlines are led by Bikash JB Rana, for which a collaboration was eased. Following Goma Air's name change to Summit Air, in 2018, Fishtail Air also changed its name to ''Summit Helicopters'' to visualize the cooperation, however has since reverted its name.

Destinations

Summit Air serves the following destinations as of January 2020:

Fleet

Accidents and incidents

*2 June 2015 - A Goma Air flight from Jomsom landed in

Pokhara Pokhara ( ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the List of cities in Nepal, second largest city after Kathmandu, with 599,5 ...

without the nose gear. All 18 passengers on board the Let 410 aircraft were safe, but the aircraft 9N-AKY suffered damage in the nose wheel part. *12 January 2017 - A Let 410 Turbolet, registration 9N-AKZ, of Goma Air outbound from

Nepalgunj Nepalgunj (; ), also spelled Nepalganj, is a List of cities in Nepal#Alphabetical list, Sub-Metropolitan City in Banke district, Banke districts of Nepal, District, Nepal. It lies on the Terai plains near the southern border with Bahraich distr ...

to Mugu experienced a tyre burst incident during landing at Talcha Airport. All the 15 passengers reported to be safe. * 27 May 2017 -

Summit Air Flight 409 On 27 May 2017, a Let L-410 Turbolet operating as Goma Air Flight 409 crashed short of the runway whilst attempting to land at Tenzing–Hillary Airport in Nepal. It was on final approach when the aircraft hit trees short of the runway and subseq ...

crashed on final approach to Lukla Airport. The aircraft, a Let 410, Registration 9N-AKY, crashed into the rock-wall below the runway. From the 3 person crew the Flight Senior Captain Paras Kumar Rai was killed in the crash, Co-Pilot Shrizan Manandhar died undergoing treatment at the scene, the Air Hostesses Pragya Maharjan was injured and airlifted to Kathmandu for further treatment. *14 April 2019 - A Let 410 Turbolet, registration 9N-AMH, crashed at

Lukla Airport Tenzing-Hillary Airport (, ), also known as Lukla Airport, is a domestic airport and altiport in the town of Lukla, in Khumbu Pasanglhamu, Solukhumbu District, Koshi Province of Nepal. The airport has gained worldwide fame, both for its unusua ...

. The aircraft was taking off from runway 24 when shortly after starting its run the nose is seen to dip and the plane deviate slightly to the left before the nose lifts again and the plane veers off the runway to the right onto the helicopter apron impacting two helicopters of Manang Air and Shree Air. The first officer of the flight died in the accident as well as two security officers on the ground near the runway. Several people were injured. * 20 March 2020 – A Summit Air Let 410 en route from Lukla to Kathmandu made an emergency landing at Ramechhap Airport due to an engine failure. All of the crew and passengers evacuated the aircraft safely. * 17 April 2022 - Summit Air SMA 407 en route from Kathmandu to

made an emergency landing at Tribhuvan international airport due to engine failure. 15 passengers and 3 crew members on board are safe.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Airlines of Nepal Airlines banned in the European Union Airlines of Nepal 2011 establishments in Nepal