A special charter flight is scheduled to repatriate Nepali passengers stranded in Kuwait on Wednesday. The 334-seat aircraft of the Kuwait Airlines will land for the first time at the Gautam Buddha International Airport in Bhairahawa at 4:45 pm.

This is part of Nepal's efforts to evacuate stranded Nepalis. Earlier, 33 Nepalis stuck in Kuwait while transiting to Nepal and other countries were evacuated and sent to their respective countries after Kuwait's airspace was closed.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) granted permission for the flight on Monday. According to the authority, the airline will deploy a Boeing 777-300 aircraft for the operation. The charter flight is being arranged in coordination with the Nepali Embassy in Kuwait, based on demand from Nepalis there. It will return empty.

Flights between Nepal and Kuwait have been affected following attacks by the conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran. As of Tuesday, regular flights between the two countries have remained suspended for 32 days since the incident.

According to a Kuwait Airways official in Kathmandu, regular operations have not resumed since the attack at Kuwait International Airport. As an alternative, preparations are underway to operate flights to Kathmandu through Dammam in Saudi Arabia, the official said, adding that a request seeking permission has already been submitted to the CAAN.

Following the attack in Iran, both Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways suspended their regular flights between Kuwait and Nepal. Kuwait Airways has permission to operate five weekly flights, while Jazeera Airways is authorised for two.

Kuwait Airways, which began flights to Nepal on October 31, 2022, currently operates a fleet of 34 aircraft and serves 56 international destinations, including Nepal.

Previously, airlines including Qatar Airways, flydubai, Jazeera Airways, and Thai AirAsia operated international flights from Bhairahawa. Nepal’s Himalaya Airlines and Nepal Airlines have also conducted international operations from the airport.