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by Shristi Kafle
KATHMANDU, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Theopening of Nepal's first aircraft museum in Dhangadi in the far westernpart of the country, some 500 km from Kathmandu, has attracted local andforeign tourists to the much-neglected region.
Just threemonths after its opening, the aircraft museum has been the talk of thetown and thousands of people have flocked to view the differentminiature aircraft on display.
In a talk with Xinhua,Captain Bed Upreti, aircraft museum director, said the Dhangadi museumis not only the first of its kind in Nepal, but also in the whole worldfor having a display of down-sized models of all kinds of aircraft.
"We are happy that people from all walks of life have visited themuseum. This is a boost to the region's tourism and we are proud of ourcontribution to this sector," Upreti said.
It was Upreti, a52-year-old former pilot and a native of Dhangadi, who conceptualizedthe idea of putting up an aircraft museum.
In l986 or some30 years ago, Upreti started his career in the Nepalese Army and lateras a military and civilian pilot. Upreti's passion for flying has ledhim to put up the museum.
The museum is actually thefuselage of a 100-seater aircraft of Cosmic Air, which has alreadyclosed its operation in Nepal. The museum, which is 35.53 meters long,contains the aircraft cockpit and more than 200 mini aircraft likeFokker, Avro, Airbus 330, Airbus 380, Boeings and many more.
At the museum's cockpit, a visitor can learn the technical details offlying. On display inside the museum are some 60 enlarged photos ofpopular tourism sites in Nepal and from around the world. The museum hasalso a restaurant that can serve visitors during their tour.
There are different replicas or old aircraft, including the first planeflown by Wright brothers in 1903. The miniature aircraft were broughtfrom different parts of the world like France, Singapore, China, SouthKorea and Indonesia.
"My aim in transforming trash into cashis solely to promote local tourism. I am not concerned about revenues. Ijust want people to discover our place and enjoy looking at the variouskinds of aircraft on display in the museum," Upreti said.
Upreti is still working as a pilot trainer at Lions Airlines in Indonesia.
The museum was completed in seven months, with around 1.5- million-U.S. dollar investment. While the idea came from one individual, it gotthe support and collaboration of the locals.
DineshBhandari, former president of Kailali Chamber of Commerce, said theirregion has a lot of natural attractions but tourists were not coming."But the aircraft museum is now attracting visitors to the region," hesaid.
According to Raj Bahadur Singh, museum manager, some100 to 200 people visit the museum every day. But on weekends andholidays, the number of visitors goes up to 400-500 a day.
"Since September, more than 20,000 people have already visited themuseum. Most of the visitors are from outside of Dhangadi and theyinclude politicians and local celebrities," Singh said.
Although largely undeveloped, Nepal's far west region has Asia' slargest suspension bridge, the largest swamp deer reserve in the countryand different species of wildlife. The region also boasts of scenictrekking destinations, several rivers and a huge forested area.
