January 10: Himalaya Airlines has received the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certificate. This achievement makes Himalaya Airlines the first Nepali airlines company to be certified with the IOSA under the International Air Transport Association (IATA).    
The certificate was granted for the airlines' initiative to strengthen the safety standards of the aviation sector. The IATA certified the airlines with IOSA in December, 2023 which will be valid until March 3, 2025, according to the Himalaya Airlines.    
It makes the airlines' safety standards on par with the safety standards of the international airlines companies in the world.    
In a press conference organized on Tuesday, Himalaya Airlines' Vice-Chairperson Bijay Shrestha said that the registration of the airlines in the IOSA was not only an achievement of the airline company but also of the aviation sector and the country.    
Similarly, Nabina Karmacharya, deputy director-general of the Aviation Safety and Security Regulation Directorate of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal said that the achievement of Himalaya Airlines was the matter of pride for the country.    
A joint venture of Nepal and China, the airlines was established in 2014 and operates flights in major countries in the Middle East and South Asia such as the UAE, Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bangladesh and five major cities in China including Beijing with its four aircraft. -- RSS