flydubai expands Nepal footprint with Dubai-Pokhara service

DUBAI: flydubai has launched daily non-stop flights between Dubai International (DXB) and Pokhara International Airport (PHH), establishing the first direct air link between Dubai and Western Nepal. Pokhara marks flydubai’s second destination in Nepal, alongside Kathmandu, offering travellers seamless access to the country’s adventure tourism capital and the principal gateway to the Annapurna Mountain range. The new route brings flydubai’s total weekly flights to Nepal to 35, complementing its four daily flights to Kathmandu and expanding its passenger and cargo capacity. The airline has carried more than 4.5 million passengers to and from Kathmandu since 2009, with 65% of traffic connecting onto the flydubai and Emirates network via Dubai’s aviation hub. The expansion into Pokhara reflects flydubai’s commitment to enhancing connectivity to underserved markets and consolidating Dubai’s position as a global hub for travel, trade and tourism. With the start of flights to Pokhara, flydubai has consolidated its position as the airline with the widest network between Dubai and South Asia, flying to 20 destinations across Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, with over 380 weekly flights to the region. Sudhir Sreedharan, Divisional Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations at flydubai, said: "Nepal has long been an integral part of flydubai’s network. Since launching operations to Kathmandu 17 years ago, our objective has been to offer a direct and accessible link between the UAE and Nepal. With the launch of our daily flights to Pokhara, we are further strengthening that commitment by offering travellers a seamless, non-stop connection to the country’s tourism capital, and an entry point to one of South Asia’s most popular leisure and adventure destinations.” The inaugural flight departed from Terminal 3, DXB on 23 September and was greeted with a ceremonial water cannon salute upon arrival at Pokhara. The new service operates under flydubai’s codeshare partnership with Emirates, offering passengers connecting to and from Pokhara seamless access to more than 140 destinations across Asia, Europe, and the Americas via Dubai, with the convenience of single-ticket booking and through-checked baggage. Popular connections from Nepal onto the flydubai network include Bucharest, Dammam, Jeddah, Muscat and Riyadh, while Larnaca, Lisbon, London, New York and Vienna continue to be amongst the top feeder markets from the Emirates network.