Internship Report on Buddha Air

Internship Report on Buddha Air

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background:

Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA) is the semester wise academic program for management students designed to provide comprehensive and practical education. The charm of BBA is increasing because it is accepted worldwide as it covers the International standard of four years (one hundred and twenty credit hours).

As per the requirement of Faculty of Management (FOM) of Tribhuvan University, students of BBA should perform the internship in any organization for eight weeks, as a partial fulfillment of program. The FOM, Tribhuvan University has its ultimate objective of educating students for professional pursuits in business, industry and government. It is further dedicated to contributing for increasing the knowledge and understanding of business and public administration. Accordingly, FOM has been developing networks with management institutes in the country and abroad to exchange new knowledge, technology and methods for achieving the higher level of efficiency in management education.

With the view to achieving same objective, FOM has introduced BBA program. The specific objectives of the BBA program are to:

• Prepare students to take-up middle level managerial positions in the business sector.

• Develop students’ skill in object-oriented business management capable of understanding and solving practical business problems creatively.

• Provide professional management education with a blend of computer and management information system courses.

• Prepare students to proceed on to postgraduate level study in business administration.

The teaching methodology of the program has focused on preparing us to face the challenges emerging out of the changing business environment. In order to achieve the aforementioned objectives, the teaching pedagogy of the program consisted case studies, practical exercises, lab works, project works, field visits, etc. throughout the program period and an internship for the period of eight weeks in an organization at the end of the final semester. An internship is an extensive program through which an intern can learn the practical aspects of what is taught between the four walls of a classroom. The BBA program has incorporated eight weeks internship program with a view to developing students’ skill in object-oriented business management, capable of understanding and solving real life business related problems. It provides practical exposure and helps the student to understand corporate social responsibility, develop the corporate attitude and venture entrepreneurship.

1.2 Objectives of the Report

The BBA program sharpens business and management concepts and develops technical capabilities, which will enable us to analyze and implement business concepts in real world scenarios. So, one of the objectives of this study is to provide us with an opportunity for learning as well as implementing the management concepts learnt in classrooms in a real organization. One of the essential criteria for successfully completing the BBA program is to undergo an internship in an organization for a minimum 8 weeks, study the relevant areas in the organization, and prepare a report in the same. The fundamentals objectives of the internship report are as follows:

• To know ticketing and reservation procedure of Buddha Air.

• To gain in-depth knowledge about operation activities performed in the company.

• To study and analyze the working system of various departments of the company.

• To know about the customers responses towards the services provided by the company.

• To mold the classroom theoretical discussions with practical experience to develop the skills demanded by the competitive job market.

1.3 Research Methodology:

This internship report is the in-depth study of particular subject or topic backed by the collection, compilation, presentation and interpretation of relevant data. In this report, both primary and secondary sources of information are used. It helped to analyze the findings in meeting the objectives of the study.

1.3.1 Organization Selection

For the completion of the BBA program, Internee had to select an organization that would perfectly match the requirement as well as help him learn about the real business working environment. Being the student of marketing, Internee selected Buddha Air among other organizations operating in Nepal with the help and suggestion of his teachers as well as well-wishers. Internee was placed at the Jawalakhel office of Buddha Air for his internship.

1.3.2 Duration

As per the course study for Tribhuvan University, Faculty of Management-BBA, the student of BBA 8th semester must do the internship of 8 weeks of working at any organization. I got an opportunity to work in HR Department and Marketing Department from June 25, 2012, to August 24, 2012, which really helped him to develop managerially and interpersonal skills and at the same time boost up my confidence level. These eight weeks has been very fruitful for me to get the insight of the internal activities of the organization. The duration of my internship has been split into various departments as follows:

Table 1.2: Duration of Internship

DEPARTMENT/WEEKS	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
MARKETING

The above table shows the duration of internship at the corporate office and duration of the works at mentioned department.

1.3.3 Placement

During the internship period, Internee was placed at Jawalakhel office of Buddha Air. The sum of the period of the internship was 8 weeks. During the period, internee was placed at Marketing Department. Internee was placed at marketing department for the period of 8 weeks.

1.3.4 Data Collection:

The report would not be completed without the collection of data. For the report, the data are collected from the primary source and secondary source. They are as follows:

 Primary Data

• Observation of working environment of the company.

• Visited Airline Company in order to associate with different aspects of the aviation sector.

• Met with the people of the aviation sector and had direct contact with them for relevant information.

• Informal discussion and interaction with the staff of the company.

 Secondary Data

• Annual report of Buddha Air.

• Information from the official website of Buddha Air

• Publications & Journals

• Official website of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN)

1.4 Limitation of the Report

It is obvious that in everything there is some kind of limitations and this internship report is also not an exception. So, it also has common limitations. The following are the major limitations of my report:

• The research study was conducted in a limited sphere of time.

• It does not give detail view of the overall functioning of the company.

• The study might not be able to fulfill the desire to know the details of the prescribed department and its transactions due to confidentiality reasons and policies of the company.

• The study is only confirmed to one Airlines Company, which is Buddha Air.

Finally, this report is prepared on the basis of available data, practical day to day operations and information provided by the company and its staffs.

CHAPTER TWO

AN INTRODUCTION TO AIRLINES INDUSTRY

2.1 Introduction of Airlines Industry

The airline industry offers transportation services via flights for passengers or freight. Airlines may lease or own an aircraft to provide these services, and at the time may combine their services with that of another airline for mutual benefits. Airlines in the industry are typically identified by a license issued to the company by a government aviation committee, or by an air operating certificate.

The airline industry consists of a variety of different services; from a singular aircraft utilized to deliver cargo or mail, to the full-service airline that operate internationally with many different aircrafts. Airlines are classified by the services they offer: inter-continental, domestic, regional, intercontinental, or international. They may be utilized as charters or scheduled services.

Airlines are highly leveraged, and as such they must buy or lease new aircraft and engines on a regular basis, as well as settle on decisions for their fleet, keeping in mind the goal of meeting market demand while operating a fleet that remains economical for the industry. In order to maintain the services an airline offers, they must handle the associated costs effectively. Labor, IT services and networks, aviation insurance, engines, spare parts, fuel, handling services, training, sales distribution, catering, and equipment are only some examples of the price of operating an airline.

Most of the profit an airline turns over from ticket sales is used to pay to keep the airline in business. Airlines are also held accountable for upholding the government regulations that apply to aircraft. For example, if a passenger boards an international flight without the correct documentation, the airline has to return the passenger to the initial country

2.2 Evolution of Aviation Industry

Although many people think of human flight as beginning with the aircraft in the early 1900s, in fact, people had been flying repeatedly for more than 100 years.

• Wright brothers’ first successful flight in Kitty Hawk in 1903.

• American Airlines in 1928 and United Airlines in 1931.

• Development of the mail system by the U.S. Postal Service helped create the airline industry.

• Increased R&D of aircraft after World War II

World War II saw a drastic increase in the pace of aircraft development and production. All countries involved in the war stepped up development and production of aircraft and flight based weapon delivery systems.

• Deregulation in 1978:

Deregulation-Entry and exit of routes and the pricing of fares were deregulated.

Benefits:

1. The creation of new jobs and lower fares.

2. More Americans were flying so airplane load factors were up.

3. There was increased competition and a wider choice for passengers.

2.3 Types of Aviation Sector

1. Civil Aviation

2. General Aviation

3. Military Aviation

2.4 Types of Airline Industry

1. Scheduled Airlines

2. Charter Airlines

3. Low-cost Airlines

4. Military Airlines

2.5 Major manufacturers of civil transport aircraft

1. Airbus, based in Europe

2. Boeing, based in the United States

3. Bombardier, based in Canada

4. Embraer, based in Brazil

5. United Aircraft Corporation, based in Russia

2.6 Aircraft Accidents

Owing to the advancement of science and technology, the dream of controlling the aerospace has come to reality, and hence with it the fear of aircraft accidents. Aviation industry has certain controllable and uncontrollable factors that lead to the occurrence of aircraft accidents. Though an accident reports usually undermines between the main cause and the number of contributing factors, aircraft accidents cannot be attributed to only a single event or error, rather a chain of factors are involved in the fatalities. The root cause for accidents is usually human errors. Almost every accident has human error in it. According to data, 70 percent of accidents occur due to human errors, 17 percent due to it aircraft malfunctioning and 13 percent due to adverse weather. More than 50 percent accidents occur due to errors committed by the flight crew.

Factors that affect in the aircraft accidents is noted below:

• Failure of human performance

• Lack of ground navigation facilities and spatial disorientation

• Failure in implementing previous crash’s report’s recommendation

• Air Traffic Controller’s errors

• Up-to-date aircraft manuals approach chart, area maps, and checklists

• Maintenance error

• Aircraft cumulative fatigue

• Crew cumulative fatigue

• Lack of situational awareness

2.7 Importance of Airlines Industry

I. Tourism and Business Travel

Millions of tourists can now travel to exotic destinations and remotely located countries much faster than in earlier eras. Thanks to air travel, business travelers can travel on short notice for deal-making, negotiations and exploring new business opportunities in local and international locations.

II. Commercial Air Freight

The demand for perishable foods and other goods and items in a more globalized world trade environment is tremendous. Air travel has changed the dynamics of the commercial freight business.

III. Natural Disasters

Airplanes and helicopters are often the best way to reach flood-prone countries in order to provide relief. Quick evacuation of disease-stricken people and other affected evacuees in remote drought- and famines-stricken regions of Africa is only possible with the help of airplanes.

IV. Emergency Diplomatic Trips

The post-Cold War era World Order is still rife with many potential conflict zones, insurgency issues and threats posed by failed nation-states. For keeping back-door diplomatic channels open and also to foster quick on-the-ground dialogues with allied nations, foreign secretaries, troubleshooting envoys and emissaries of the big-league powers need to fly around the world at short notice.

V. Emergencies

Small aircraft and helicopters are often used to airlift accident victims quickly to Emergency Rooms and nearby hospitals. Many victims in deadly crashes get saved primarily due to immediate air travel.

2.8 Origin and Development of Aviation Industry of Nepal

The aviation history of Nepal started in early 1950's. Initially, neighboring Indian aircraft used to land on a mere cow grazing place called Gaucharan in Kathmandu. There are tales that a pilot waiting to land there had to buzz the airfield several times to shoo the cows off it before landing.

Until 1951, only a few foreigners had penetrated into Nepal. They were mainly British officers of the Gurkha troops, a few stray scholars and friends of the Royal family. Later on, Indian air companies started their operation for business purposes and connected Nepal with Indian cities. After the establishment of the national flag carrier, the RNA, the route expansion of civil aviation made extensive progress domestically and internationally.

The civil aviation service started in Nepal in 1953 with three old American -made DC-3 Dakotas belonging to an Indian company. After five years, Nepal established her own registered airline, Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation in July 1958 with one DC-3. There was only 96 personnel then. In the beginning, its service was limited to Indian cities like Patna, Calcutta and Delhi in the International Sector and to Simara, Pokhara and Biratnagar in the Domestic Sector. The facilities provided at that time were limited.

Royal Nepal took over an international schedule in 1960. Starting with a fleet of Douglas DC-3's, the airline quickly moved on to the turboprop Fokker F-27.

The commissioning of the remarkable Twin Otter and Pilatus Porter aircraft into the Royal Nepal Airlines fleet in the 1970s brought about a quick and easy way of accessing many of the remote regions of the kingdom.

By the early 1970s, the airline had introduced Hawker Siddeley HS-748 turboprops, and Boeing 727 jet airliners were introduced in 1972 after Kathmandu's runway had been extended for medium sized jet operations. The Boeing 727s were gradually replaced by Boeing 757s.

After the advent of democracy and the introduction of a liberal sky policy, the Nepali skies were filled with many private airlines that not only allowed the aviation business to flourish but opened the way for new aircraft to be introduced. Browsing through the history of Nepal’s aviation, we find that helicopter services have long been used for various purposes especially for carrying cargo and ferrying sick people. This was vital especially for people who were practically out of reach from land routes and even fixed-wing aircraft. Hence, the use of small helicopters in the beginning was of immense importance. But later on, once a liberal sky policy was established, private airlines quickly brought in helicopter services in Nepal’s domestic service.

At the very commencement of the liberal sky policy, the first airlines to operate rotary wing aircraft were Himalayan Helicopters and Asian Airlines. The latter was the pioneer in operating Mi-17 helicopters in Nepal. Later on, other domestic airlines also began to operate bigger versions of the helicopter. The Mi-17 is a Russian helicopter, virtually a revision of the Mi-8 design but with a portside tail rotor and a more powerful power plant of the Mi-14. This resulted in an overall improvement in performance, particularly the hovering ceiling.

There are eight domestic carriers operating scheduled flights to almost 44 districts of the republic. Today, it is possible to reach most of the tourist destinations in Nepal, from remote airfields to major hub cities, by air. This facility has greatly enhanced the tourism industry. The step taken by the government of Nepal to adopt a liberal sky policy allowing private airlines to operate domestic air service has strengthened the development of at least the tourism sector.

2.9 Complete Listing of Domestic Airlines Companies

That Is Established In Nepal

• Agni Air

• Buddha Air

• Cosmic Air

• Fishtail Air

• Gorkha Airlines

• Guna Airlines

• Karnali Air

• Nepal Airlines

• Shangrila Air

• Shree Airlines

• Sita Air

• Skyline Airways

• Yeti Airlines

CHAPTER THREE

INTRODUCTION OF AN ORGANIZATION

3.1 An Overview of Buddha Air

Buddha Air Pvt. Ltd is a privately operated air travel company founded on 23 April 1996 and registered as a private limited company at the Company Registrar Office of the Ministry of Industry, Government of Nepal, under the Company Act, 2021 BS of Nepal. The company headquarters is located at Jawalakhel, Lalitpur while there are two city sales offices in the most convenient locations within the Kathmandu Valley.

After the restoration of multi-party democracy in 1990 and the subsequent liberalization of the economy, the private sector was encouraged to invest in public infrastructure and services. Surendra Bahadur Basnet, the Chairman and founder of Buddha Air, a retired Supreme Court Justice, former Chief Election Commissioner and a minister in the former government of Nepal came from a simple farming background. His passion for serving the people wholeheartedly remained unfettered even years after retiring from public service. In 1994 his youngest son Shivendra Bahadur Basnet had just returned from Ukraine after completing his training as a helicopter pilot. Realizing the need and growing demand for air transport of which there were none that could be described as completely safe and trustworthy, the family decided to take a risk and established Buddha Air. A brand new just out of the factory Beech 1900D aircraft was purchased from the US-based Raytheon Aircraft (now Hawker Beechcraft) and the operation began.

After 12 years of dedicated non-stop service, more than 100,000 flight hours logged in with over 3 million passengers flown to nine destinations with permanent runways in the country, Buddha Air today is the largest domestic air travel operator in Nepal employing more than 500 experienced professionals. The company has the largest fleet of the world’s best aircrafts amongst all domestic airliners in operation with four 18 seat Beechcraft-1900 D, three 47 seat ATR-42, and one 72 seat ATR 72-500 flying out to all the trunk routes with a minimum of 1200 m of the permanent runway. It is the company’s policy to place safety at the highest priority.

Buddha Air’s safety record and reliability has earned us a host of awards including the Highest Safety Award given by the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation of the Government of Nepal as well as a list of the most esteemed clientele in Nepal including most United Nations organizations, all major diplomatic missions, international non-government organizations as well as national level organizations.

Vision

Buddha Air will be the very efficient domestic carrier that would have the best aircraft and quality standards unheard of in the domestic sector. It will provide the highest level of service to its customer. It will be a name people will trust.

Mission

Buddha Air has a mission of becoming the domestic market leader in air transportation. This will be attained by:

• Setting industry standards for safety and security

• Providing world class customer service

• Creating an open and participatory work environment which seeks positive changes, rewards, innovation and provides growth, security and opportunity to all employees.

• Providing consistently superior return to shareholder.

Corporate Objective:

• To maintain the position of market leader

• To always have an average of 90 percent on time take off of all scheduled flight

Corporate strategies

• Route innovation and diversification

• Fleet expansion

• Customer oriented service

• Aggressive marketing

• Market Expansion

• Limited staff growth

3.3 Organizational Structure of Buddha Air

Figure 3.1: structure of Buddha air

Source: company profile

3.3.1 Board of Promoters

Buddha Air is a family owned operation. There are three proprietors (promoters) in the board:

Table 3.1 Board of Promoters

Chairman	Mr. Surendra Bahadur Basnet
Managing Director	Mr. Birendra Bahadur Basnet
Promoter	Mrs. Sunita Sijapati Basnet

Chairman Mr. Surendra Bahadur Basnet

Managing Director Mr. Birendra Bahadur Basnet

Promoter Mrs. Sunita Sijapati Basnet

Operations

Headed by Devendra Bahadur Basnet, Operation Director, and Instructor Pilot

The operations department is responsible for flight safety, accident prevention and training of the crew members. Two specialized divisions have been created for enhancing safety and providing quality training to crew members. The Chief of Flight Safety division is responsible for flight safety and accident prevention programs implementation. The Chief of training division is responsible for training and implementing the timely recommendations of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal and in-house flight safety regulations.

Engineering

Headed by Mohan Bahadur Thapa, Chief Engineer

Buddha Air’s engineering department is on of the largest and the strongest in the entire airline industry in Nepal. The department has 16 engineers, 29 technicians and 36 corporate staffs who serve as the backbone of the company. These people are entrusted with the responsibility to maintain each aircraft in an airworthy condition as stipulated by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) and the aircraft operators manuals provided by the manufacturer. All engineers are provided with periodical refresher training by aircraft manufacturers and type rated there.

For assured rated effectiveness, the department is subdivided into Maintenance, Maintenance Planning, Workshop, Quality Assurance, Technical Records, Library, Procurement, and Stores. We have sufficient spare inventory worth US$ 3.5 million to run the operation smoothly. This includes no go items like a spare engine, main landing gear, nose landing gear, propellers, etc along with 100% availability of fast moving items in our stock. A computerized Engineering and Inventory system helps monitor and forecast maintenance and inventory schedules.

All engineers are trained in the Raytheon Maintenance Training Center, Flight Safety International, Wichita, USA, Pratt and Whitney Canada and the Singapore Training Center. Buddha Air is the only airlines in Nepal qualified to carry out NDT requirements. All maintenance is done in our very own workshop and the company is in the process of constructing a state of the art hangar and workshop with an area of more than 30,000 sq ft.

Marketing

Headed by Rupesh Joshi, Executive Manager

The marketing department has played a vital role in generating market confidence backed by service you can trust. Surviving today’s cut throat competition would not have been possible without the one hundred twenty four marketing staffs dedicated to the marketing department dedicated for reservation, front line marketing, attendants or loaders, the sales department, public relations and in corporate marketing. In addition, there is a total of ninety-eight employees in the sales offices located in Biratnagar, Dharan, Pokhara, Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj, Bhadrapur, Janakpur, Simara, Bharatpur, and Dhangadhi.

Buddha Air marketing department has worked hard to ensure that passengers get the best service. We welcome feedbacks which are looked upon very attentively. They also regularly interact with tour and travel operators with the objective of making travel as safe, reliable, and comfortable as possible. Our in-house trimester publication Buddha

Management Information System

Headed by: Rajin Ranjit, Executive Manager

The Management Information System prepares, executes and evaluates strategic operational plans. The division is also responsible for developing, operating and maintaining technology, software, and databases for planning and monitoring departmental and overall performance as well as generating, compiling and disseminating required information for the management to make decisions.

Finance

Revenue Division Headed by Ganesh Raj Lohani, Executive Manager

Expense Division Headed by Ramesh Kumar Luitel, Executive Manager

The department is responsible for developing and implementing financial policies, strategies, plans and programs, preparing annual revenue and expenditure budgets based on cost analysis, developing financial performance indicators, monitoring, analyzing and reporting financial status and information, collecting sales and handling cash and bank transactions, handling all payments as per the financial policies and rules, maintaining accounts of revenues and expenditures, preparing all required financial statements, including final accounts, checking sales revenues and control cash value documents of sales outlets, assessing and settling tax obligations and assist in conducting internal audit. The finance department is today divided into

Human Resources

Headed by Mr. Khagendra Bahadur Basnet, Manager

The department’s primary responsibility is to plan and manage human resource functions to ensure regular availability, continuous development and full utilization of necessary human resources to get effective results from them while keeping them satisfied. More specifically the department conducts periodical job analysis, revising job descriptions and specifications, prepares staff recruitment and selection packages for various staff categories and administers them, organizes and coordinates staff recruitment and selection programs to make available the required staff as per the approved human resource plans and initiate, coordinate and organize employee movements such as placement, transfer, promotion and retirement as per the company’s needs and policies as well as staffs’ assessment and needs.

General Services

Officer in Charge: Mr. Ravi Thapa

Buddha Air’s General Service department provides maintenance, procurement, supplies and administrative support for the smooth operation of the administration. It is the department’s duty to prepare policies, programs, rules and procedures for providing logistics services such as non-engineering supplies, general maintenance and transportation, coordinate and monitor the implementation of logistics services policies, programs and rules, procure, store and supply non-engineering supplies, arrange for all general repair/maintenance works, and manage transportation and catering services.

3.3.2 Buddha Air Independent Worker Union

Unlike other companies whose progress is altered by division amongst management and staff, Buddha Air prides itself in working together as one big family. Buddha Air understands that the success of the company lies in our unity and hard work. Our shared sense of values and objectives permit us to refrain from bringing external political divisions

3.4 Fleet Information

Buddha Air began with 1 Beech 1900 D and now has 8 best aircraft.

Buddha Fleet

Buddha Air prides itself in maintaining safety as the highest priority and has always bought brand new aircrafts in line with this policy. At the moment Buddha Air owns a fleet of five just off the factory Beechcraft 1900D and three ATR 42 – 320 (Avions de Transport Régional or Aerei da Trasporto Regionale)

Beechcraft 1900D (B1900D)

The B1900D have been modified and upgraded from its predecessor Beech 1900C and first commercially commissioned in March 1992. Buddha Air is the only airline operating brand new, straight-out-of-the-factory, and currently in production pressurized aircrafts in Nepal. The aircraft is manufactured by the US-based Raytheon Aircraft Company (now Hawker Beechcraft). Each Beechcraft cost Buddha Air about US$ 5 million each.

The B1900D is the only 19 seat aircraft in the world to meet FAA’s stringent turbine engine rotor burst requirement and the FAR 23. The aircraft has all the modern avionics, instruments and airframe including weather radar and EFIS (semi-glass cockpit) that are in modern jetliners. The engines PT6A-67Ds are more powerful than its predecessors and have a service ceiling of 33,000 feet and a single engine performance of 17,500 feet. B1900D is also the chosen 19-seater aircraft of the American Aircraft Pilot's Association.

Beech 1900D aircraft are equipped with state-of-the-art safety devices like TCAS, GPWS, radar etc. Our aircraft have very wide seats - similar to those on MD 80 jets. Full pressurization and air conditioning allow instant optimum cabin temperature. The remarkably low noise level helps you relax and concentrate more on the views outside. Full stand-up cabin height and reading lights add to your comfort.

The Beech 1900D is a substantial redesign of the earlier 1900C model entered service featuring a wingspan (over winglets) of 17.67m (58ft), wing area of 28.8 sq m (310.0sq ft), the length of 17.63m (57ft 10in), and height of 4.72m (15ft 6in) in 1991.

The Beechcraft 1900 D is the latest and last version of the world famous Beechcraft 1900 series used as a regional airliner and corporate transporter and runs on two 955kW (1280shp) P&WC PT6A67D turboprops. It has maximum cruising speed of 533km/h (288kt) and is capable of long range cruises of up to 2776km (1498nm). It can fly with a maximum takeoff weight of 7688kg (17,120lb) and requires two flight crews.

ATR 42-320

ATR is a French-Italian aircraft manufacturer formed in 1981 by Aérospatiale of France (now EADS) and Aeritalia (now Alenia Aeronautica) of Italy. Its primary products are the ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft.

Alenia Aeronautica's manufacturing facilities in Pomigliano d'Arco, near Naples, Italy produce the aircraft fuselage and tail sections. Aircraft wings are assembled at EADS Sogerma in Bordeaux in western France for Airbus France. Final assembly, flight-testing, certification and deliveries are the responsibility of ATR in Toulouse, France.

The ATR 42-320 is the second development of the ATR 42. It draws from the in-service experience of about 700 ATR aircrafts flying worldwide, with average dispatch reliability in excess of 99.6%. It uses Pratt and Whitney Canada PW121E engines offering a cruise speed of 250 knots, a fast climb from 1,500 ft to 17,000 ft in less than 10 min, outstanding take-off and single engine performance maintained even in hot and high condition. It has excellent short-field performance and step approach capability.

The ATR 42-320 provides passengers with an on-board comfort and services comparable to the jetliner. It has a high cruise ceiling of about 7,000 m (21,000 ft) with inherent stability and can operate in a maximum altitude of 25,000ft. It features large overhead bins including a handrail to facilitate passengers and crew movement along the cabin and has more windows than rows of seats for optimized views, individual reading lights and cabin attendant call system along with quiet, comfortable and spacious cabins.

ATR 72-500

ATR 72-500 represents the latest generation of turboprop aircraft with comfort and performance. The 70-seat ATR 72-500 is known to be the best aircraft with turbo-prop engines. Powered by PW127 engines, also used to power ATR 42-500, the ATR 72-500 provides an outstanding short field performance for an aircraft of this size. The modernized new look passenger cabin, ergonomic leather seats and more quiet than regional jets are the main features that make it the most comfortable aircraft for regional operations.

In ATR 72-500, a range of improvements in the field of noise and vibration has been implemented. The aircraft has an optimized, efficient and technologically advanced acoustic treatment of the structure with the installation of Dynamic Vibration Absorbers and skin damping. A new look interior is engineered for maximum noise reduction and optimum comfort through new materials, absorbent panels and carpets. There are large overhead bins including handrail to facilitate passengers and crew movement along the cabin.

ATR 72-500 emits about 50% less CO2 per passenger-km than new-generation jets and up to three times less CO2 than older ones. Compared to a car, the ATR 72-500's Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per seat/km on a 200-Nm (370 km) sector are 15% lower.

3.5 Hanger

Stretching over an area of 25,000 sq ft inside the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the hangar constructed by Buddha Airline has the latest technologies available in the world. The total construction cost of the hangar, which took a whole long year for its completion, has been estimated to cross Rs 200 million. The airline will pay Rs 5 million annually to the Nepal government for the land. The ground floor of the three-storey hangar consists of engineering workshop and store.The first floor has operations and engineering departments, and the second floor has a canteen, a meeting hall, marketing department and operation and engineering departments.

Without the hanger of its own Buddha Air faced many difficulties as the maintenance works of the aircrafts had to be done under the open sky. Now the maintenance works will be carried out inside the hangar which is further supposed to ensure the safety of flights.

3.6 Special Services

Buddha Air envisions itself as the safest, most reliable and comfortable means of transportation. From the moment any passenger books our tickets, we ensure that our passengers get the best service. Till date, Buddha Air has flown over 5 million passengers with zero insurance claims. All passengers are backed by third party, passenger baggage legal liability insurance including bodily injury/ property damage claim of up to US$ 60 million. In the case of passengers traveling in Buddha Air, it offers a provision of the insurance claim of up to US$ 20,000 per passenger. Aircraft are backed by Pratt & Whitney’s complete fleet maintenance and manpower plan, which includes 100% quality maintenance.

The insurance of Buddha Air is handled by the leading insurance broker in the Lloyds market, Marsh Limited and has the leading insurance underwriter of the world, AIG. The risk analysis is done by the AON-another leading broker.

• Buddha Air provides flights to nine destinations within Nepal and has its headquarters in Jawalakhel, Lalitpur.

• Comfortable buses that transport you from the terminal to the aircraft.

• In the case of flight cancelation due to bad weather conditions we provide the immediate refund on demand.

• Wheelchairs or portable oxygen cylinders can be arranged for passengers with special needs. In case, passengers need emergency medical services we can arrange for ambulances upon arrival at the destination.

• Underage children traveling unaccompanied are especially looked after by the airport staff in the terminal and by the flight steward while in the aircraft.

• All flights serve nonalcoholic drinks as well as the latest edition of national dailies and Yatra, the in-flight magazine published by Buddha Air.

• Passengers can join frequent flyer program with the Royal Club and earn points. Royal Club offers several benefits to our valued clients.

• Provides cargo services which are handled by the cargo division.

• Buddha Holidays is our very own travel and tour management company dedicated to our clients, which can assist you in planning and organizing your holiday trip in Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet. Buddha Holidays also offers some exciting tour packages within Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet.

3.7 Accident of Buddha Air

On 25 September 2011, a Beech craft 1900D passenger plane, operated by Buddha Air, struck terrain while on approach to Kathmandu-Tribhuvan Airport (KTM), Nepal. There were 16 tourists and 3 crew members on board. Initial reports say there was one survivor, but this person died on the way to the hospital. The weather was overcast with very low clouds on the approach. Flights were operating normally under VFR rules at the time of the accident. The Beech 1900 was on the base leg of the approach following a sightseeing flight.

CHAPTER FOUR

ANALYSIS OF ACTIVITIES DONE AND PROBLEM SOLVED

As an organization has several departments, Buddha Air also has various departments and the activities are performed respectively according to their nature and function. As an internee, it was indeed a great opportunity to know about the aviation activities in depth.During internship period, internee got an opportunity to work on the various department of Buddha Air, but this report basically focuses on the Marketing department and Reservation department of Buddha Air.

4.1 Marketing Department

Marketing is ‘the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.’

Marketing Department of Buddha air is headed by Rupesh Joshi, executive manager. Buddha Air marketing department has worked hard to ensure that passengers get the best service. It has played a vital role in generating market confidence backed by the service you can trust. 124 marketing staffs dedicated to the marketing department are distributed for reservation, front line marketing, attendants or loaders, the sales department, public relations and in corporate marketing. In addition, there is a total of 98 employees in the sales offices outstation located in Biratnagar, Dharan, Pokhara, Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj, Bhadrapur, Janakpur, Simara, Bharatpur, and Dhangadhi. This department regularly interacts with tour and travel operators with the objective of making travel as safe, reliable, and comfortable as possible.

Under the marketing department, there are further six sub-divisions that are directly involved in the marketing activities and customer retention. Their subdivisions are responsible for various that include mainly ticketing.

The hierarchy of marketing departments is shown below:

Figure 4.1: Marketing Sub-divisions

Source: company profile

Under these available sub-divisions, Internee was placed under the royal club and reservation department. This department mainly focuses on ticketing and extra facilities provided by the organization to the frequent flyers respectively.

4.1.1 Royal Club Division

The royal club is the marketing strategy of Buddha air to encourage and reinforce their regular customer. The more you fly, the more miles you accumulate. Once enough miles are collected, one can have the option of redeeming their miles for great benefits. They can fly free to qualifying destinations or even holiday at exclusive resorts and hotels. They can also have accorded preferential services and extra baggage allowance (up to 5 kg extra).

If enough miles have accrued to receive benefits, then one can receive a Redemption Form available at all Buddha Air offices. The customer should fill the form completely and submit it to receive the chosen award. Once created membership miles can also benefit their spouse and child. Free tickets and vouchers can be issued in the name of their spouse or child. Royal Club members can now convert their achieved miles into GIFT VOUCHERS. It can be used for shopping because it's as good as cash! Gift vouchers and benefits will only be issued from Head Office at Jawalakhel.

As a member of the ROYAL CLUB, members will also receive discounts on many shops, restaurants, health clubs, hotels and other outlets. Members will be updated about these through our quarterly newsletter.

The success of frequent flyer program has become the reason to cherish. The club membership has become a strong medium to reach their regular passengers by rewarding them.

4.1.2 Reservation Division

Airline reservation means to book flights. Reservation division under marketing department is responsible for sale and ticketing. The Reservations Division is usually the first point of contact between prospective clients and the company, thus the responsibility for creating the all important falls to all Reservations personnel. The Reservations Department is to accept and process all reservations and requests, check the availability of tickets, operate and update the passengers’ history and maximize sales of ticket

Reservation of tickets of Buddha air is carried out by authorized sales agents. Sales agent can be the prepaid agent, bank guaranteed or personal guaranteed. Reservation division is responsible to manage, motivate and encourage such sales agent to increase its sale volume.

Functions of reservation departments are:

a) Conduct the reservation inquiry

b) Determine tickets and rate availability

c) Create the reservation record

d) Confirm the reservation record

e) Maintain the reservation record

f) Produce reservation reports

4.2 Analysis of Channel of Distribution of Buddha Air

As an internee, being in reservation division was a great opportunity to know about the distribution channel of Buddha air. Revolution in the development of communication system has the great impact on the distribution channel of Buddha air.

Buddha air uses the multi-channel of distribution. Selling of Buddha Air tickets is made through large and established travel agents as well as through anilines’ websites.

The distribution of airline seats, traditionally dominated by travel agents, is rapidly changing. Both traditional and online agencies are increasingly threatened by the growth in direct-to-consumer airline websites, reduced or capped commission levels, and heightened industry cooperation among airlines.

Effective distribution is a key issue for airline companies. In a highly competitive environment, making the booking process as convenient as possible for the customer is important as it's easy to switch to alternatives if it's difficult to book an airline's flights. The perishable nature of the airline product heightens the importance of effective distribution. Any seats left unsold on a particular flight cannot be stored and subsequently sold at a later date – in effect, their revenue is lost forever. Industry cost structures, with a high proportion of fixed costs which must be covered irrespective of sales levels, further increase the importance of selling every seat on every flight at an optimum price, as every extra pound earned adds directly to profitability. To cope with this challenge, airlines developed highly sophisticated yield management systems in an attempt to manipulate supply and demand and maximize revenue. By periodically analyzing both historical trends and the external environment, such systems help to determine the prices and overbooking policies most likely to result in full flights.

Before the development of electronic systems, booking a flight was a complex process. Airlines periodically published their schedules in booklets which were made available to travel agents. Making a booking involved a travel agent identifying which airlines flew on the route, examining schedules to see if a flight that met the customer's requirements existed, and contacting the selected airline to see if seats were available and be quoted a fare. Once the flight details were confirmed as being acceptable to the customer, the agent again had to contact the airline reservation's department, reconfirm the details and make the actual booking.

Clearly this process was unsatisfactory. For the consumer, it involved considerable delay; for the travel agent, the time it took to deal with each customer enquiry, find relevant information and make a booking made day-to-day operations expensive; and airlines had to maintain a large workforce to handle enquiries and process reservations, while at the same time paying commission of between 8% and 10% to travel agents on each booking, effectively paying twice for the same work.

The airlines had a further problem – managing data about flight schedules, fares, seat availability and passenger reservations. The sheer volume of data and the rate at which it changed led the airlines to turn to computerized systems in the late 1950s. Originally developed as internal systems for use by their own staff, the airlines quickly identified the efficiencies that would arise from allowing travel agents direct access to the system to process inquiries and make bookings.

4.2.1 Selling of Ticket through Sales Agent

Buddha air has numerous authorized sales agents throughout the nation for reservation of air tickets. Such sales agents are directly responsible for reservation department of Buddha air. Broadly such sale agents can be further categorized into

• Prepaid cash agent

Such sales agent initially pays minimum cash to Buddha Air to have the authority to issue the tickets. The minimum balance for agents within the Kathmandu valley is fifty thousand and for agents outside the valley are twenty-five thousands. They cannot issue tickets beyond their remaining balance.

• Bank guaranteed agent

Such agents have bank guarantee regarding the payment of Buddha Air. They can issue tickets of thirty hundred thousand fortnightly. They should make the regular payment every fifteen days sales.

• Personal guaranteed agent

This is a very rare type of sales agent. In some condition Chairman or managing director of the company can make a person or firm as the authorized sales agent of Buddha Air directly due to their personal relationship.

4.2.2 Direct Selling

Buddha air directly sells online tickets through their websites. To get this service, passengers should be the member of e-sewa. Registration with e-sewa is a very simple process, where e-sewa shall provide the registrant with the user id (email id) and password and the initial balance of zero amounts. Then they should deposit balance in their e-sewa account from Global Bank or Bank of Kathmandu. If you have enough balance amount with e-sewa, you can directly purchase Buddha Air’s e-ticket.

4.3 Survey

Apart from the activities performed in the assigned department, a survey was also conducted focusing on the customer preference and criteria for choosing a particular airline. This survey was conducted over 200 respondents. The survey was conducted using close-ended questionnaire method. A small database was created using the collected data which was later used to generate the graph, which is presented below:

Figure 4.1: pie chart on the preference of the airlines

Source: the survey

4.3.1 Survey Work Assigned

I. Data Collection

Gathering of data related to the reach of civil aviation sector of Nepal was done. The data collection was aimed to find out the probable users and the present users of the airline as a medium of transportation, which could be used for the preparation of the report.

II. Documentation and minor report preparation

The internee also documented the gathered information and provided the brief report. The report prepared under this heading was not in a concrete format and was not used for official purpose.

4.3.2 Findings of the survey

The conducted survey helped to identify the market leader in the aviation sector. The preference and factor for choosing the airline were lined-out, giving a slight hint to the factors involved in the survey.

• Buddha air is entrusted by the people for providing the international services as well.

• Buddha air is regarded as the safest airlines of Nepal.

• It’s been a demand of the people for increasing its flight destination to the rural part of the country.

• General customers have been looking for a festival package from Buddha air.

• The customer wants the mobile ticketing to be more effective for booking purpose of the ticket.

• It’s a booming stage for the aviation companies in Nepal.

• The services of the airlines company should be viable by the lower middle class of the people as well.

• There is a tough price competition due to the entrance of the new airlines.

4.3.3 SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis is one of the major tools for analyzing organizational internal as well as external environment. The internal environment provides strength and weaknesses whereas the external environment poses opportunities and threats to the organization. Thus, the organization uses its strength to grab opportunities and minimize threats. Most of the organizations use this tool to formulate plan, policies, and strategies for achieving goals.

The SWOT analysis of Buddha Air can be done as follows:

 Strengths

• Highly experienced, efficient, hardworking, professional and friendly staffs

• Association with Internationally recognized aviation company Pratt & Whitney

• Flight safety is the key strength

• Prime client of International Finance Corporation (IFC)

• Better image and established brand name in the market

• Quality work culture leading to superior and prompt service

• Has won eighteen international awards in the field of aviation

• The only private company that as international flight schedule

• Regular training and development

 Weaknesses

• Punctuality has been the recent problem faced

• Customer expectation is not matched as per the company

• In-flight food and services need to be upgraded

• Lack of destinations to rural areas of Nepal

 Opportunities

• Establish as a long route international private carrier

• Maximum market coverage

• Upgrade fleet size and focus on rural areas of Nepal

• Provide mobile services (m-ticketing, flight detail)

• Provide services in stall route

 Threats

• Growing number of domestic carriers

• The increase in a number of the road directly affects the air transport.

• Fuel price fluctuation

• Power cut hampers control tower

• Global recession

CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION AND LESSON LEARNT

5.1 Conclusion

Even though Nepal is one of the least developed countries in the world, the aviation sector is rapidly developing. Aviation sector plays an important role in transportation, industrial development, distribution of goods and services, tourism etc. Therefore, there is growing the need for the development of the transportation in the country which is somehow fulfilled by Nepalese aviation sectors.

Buddha air has customized its services according to the needs and wants of the customers. The majority of the customers are satisfied with the services provided by Buddha air. The major reason behind it was cooperative and responsive staff.

From above analysis, it is clear that Buddha air is one of the well-established and leading airlines of Nepal which aims to serve its valued customers through quality and advancement of its services throughout the nation. The company is widely providing its financial services through the largely extended network. During the internship period, Intern got an opportunity to gain an in-depth knowledge of the aviation sector and scrutinize its various aspects. Internship favored him to get the practical acquaintance of the airline industry and its overall operation system. Intern observed the functional activities reservation and understood the corporate culture. Prior to internship, him knowledge was limited within the books. At Buddha air, Intern was fully guided by all the staff in acquiring the practical knowledge. It not only provided him the experience of functional activities but also to let him know about the informal organizational relationships. The internship added the sense of responsibility to him while performing any task. The experience of the internship was incredible which boosted his confidence level and enhanced his inter-personal communication skills. It developed interaction skills and shaped up his personality too.

Therefore, the intern is very much pleased to conclude that Buddha air is one of the best airlines with the friendly environment and excellent customer service.

5.2 LESSON LEARNT

The duration of internship lasted for around two months and during the course of the internship there were various lessons that intern was able to learn. This internship was a great opportunity for the intern to face real-life work scenarios after four years in the classroom, and it must be said that it was a great learning experience for him. Some of the Lessons intern learnt during his time as an intern at Buddha Air could be summarized as follows:

• Learn basic activities and operations of the sales department and its role in the overall functioning of the company.

• Learn to use theoretical knowledge into the practical working environment.

• Learn to deal with various type of customers.

• Learn the importance of the time management and the need of the communication skills.

• Learn the culture of the aviation industry.

• Learn the importance of inter-personal communication skills in professional life.

• Learn the procedures of filing and indexing of different document.

• Learn the working system of various other departments of the company.

• Learn authority and responsibility relationship among the various managerial and subordinate level in the hierarchy of the Buddha Air.

• Learn that one should not only know to attract a customer but also should be able to retain them.