FLYING A CHINESE BUILT AIRLINER IN NEPAL! Xian MA60 

They phoned ahead to get your boarding pass fast-tracked, then let you stay on the aircraft, AND showed you round? THAT is service par excellence. Kudos to Nepal Airlines!

"Most have been grounded due to safety concerns" (...) "... so I'd try to get booked on one." See, that's why we like this channel.

I flew on an MA60 on Lao Airlines (Luang Prabang, Laos to Vientianne, Laos) in 2008. I remember the seats looked like they were covered in beach towels. It was a pretty flight as we flew over mountains and then over the Mekong River before landing.

Cost you more for a domestic flight in Nepal, than it did to actually get to Nepal

I love how Noel's seat mate just grins and stares into the camera at 6:06. Killed me.

"So this emergency seat window is only used in an emergency ok?" That's one way to get the point across i guess

I operated that aircraft around ten years ago when my airline still had that. Watching the video brought back a lot of memories.

Noel you show a great deal of patience and still keep smiling, sometimes in the most trying of circumstances. I salute you .

I have a soft spot for high winged aircraft. My personal favorite is the F27 and her successor, the F50. Never flown on the MA-60 though, so thanks for the video.

Hey Noel. Flew on this aircraft for a trekking expedition I did in China. The crew were extremely friendly and the fares were ridiculously cheap! Felt the scenery made it an experience as well. Obviously not luxury but an experience. A lot of people who fly from NepalGunj to Kathmandu, are often Indians who are heading to China for a holy trek of Mt. Kailash (6000m)..a tedious route and bureaucratic process handled in Nepal..(hence lack of direct flights) as I'm sure you experienced first hand. Great video though!

Rarest Aircraft was a 727 of AeroContinente back in about 2002. I’ve also flown domestically in Nepal, made me laugh as my flight was delayed for a whole day. Got told to come back tomorrow 😂

"I am 5A" "Yes" (prep'ing seatbelt on 5B) "No 5A is window seat" "OH YOU WANT TO SIT HERE??" "...yes..."

I really enjoyed that. It sounds odd, but I get claustrophobic just watching a lot of flights where you're jammed in, but there was a very real sense of space and movement in that craft. In its spartan way, it was far comfortable than many more expensive jet flights.

“You are sitting at the emergency window “ 1 second later “ And it’s only used for emergency” 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

In these countries, they give you free food and drinks because they have great hospitality and because you are filming, they also believe it could be good for their airline's business.

Ticket salesman: "I have to warn you sir, this is a very dangerous aircraft" Noel: "yes"

As a Nepalese, I was surprised to see you do a video in Nepal 😂. Hope you have a good time in Nepal.

Thanks for showcasing the new Chinese-built commercial aircraft! Absolutely love the cabin decor in this aircraft. THANK YOU!

Hi, I flew on same aircraft from Sihanoukville Cambodia to Siem Reap a few years ago with Cambodia Bayon Airlines. Also a new aircraft at the time, with very similar colouring inside and out. I was very impressed with the 1 hour flight, comfortable and quite smooth. Especially seeing it was very thundery and stormy weather and similar altitude to your flight. We were also lightly fed and watered! Thanks for excellent video..

I've started looking around for Noel in the airports when I am traveling

Thanks Noel you are a brave man , when there are constant delays most times something is wrong with the airplane . As for me I don't care for prop planes of any size even 4 engine ones . Noel they will call you when the Boeing 737-Max is certified to fly again .

Noel, next time you're in China try to fly on the COMAC ARJ-21. That's another very rare aircraft in my opinion. But don't go now, too much health risk give it a few months.

Rare aircrafts I was on are Caravelle, Pilatus Porter, Fokker F27, Trident Three. Fokker F28. Rare enough for me and nice memories, enjoyed all of them. Never landed in the Porter though, ‘cause every time I jumped out.

People are whinging about Chinese aircraft while multi million dollar Boeing going down after 10 seconds in the air

Flew on a beech 99 when I was 14 and my friend and I flew alone for our first time to Boston from Augusta, Maine back in 1983. Flew on a a USAF KC-135 tanker and a C-130 Hercules as well as an F-4G phantom but these last 3 would hardly be considered commercial flights. Flew on a world airways DC-10 charter flight to Germany bin 1988. A few DC-9s, a Swiss international A340, and a TWA 747-200.

G'Day Noel, great video, I've flown on the MA60 in Tonga, as you say, nothing wrong with it if its maintained well, and flown within the flight envelope. The nicest aircraft I've flown as pilot is the DHC-2 Beaver, and a couple of rare as pax, the De Havilland Domminie, and the Beechcraft Staggerwing, and Jets, the DC8-72 of Kalitta cargo.

Rarest aircraft was a C2A, US navy out to the USS Carl Vinson (CVN70). Landing was a bit rough due to the arresting wires.

That ticketing process is both antiquated and awesome.

I flew on a Hevilift ATR 42-300 a couple of years ago on their CASA Certification flight. Even got handwritten boarding passes, making it a pretty unique experience in Australia, in 2018.

Easily the rarest aircraft I've had the pleasure to have flown would be the GZ-20. Fewer than 20 ever built with no more than 3 or 4 operating at a time from the 1970s until 2014 when the last one was withdrawn. And they were very difficult to fly aboard as well, as the operator didn't really sell tickets to the public. I just happened to get incredibly lucky that my grandfather was able to get me aboard when I was about 5 or 6 years old.

Correction you departed from runway 02. I hope you had great time here.

I'd be a little scared on a plane like that with an airline like that, but its 2023 and things have changed a lot. Great flight video Noel

We're really sorry for your inconvenience. But we're mighty glad and thankful to you for visiting our country.🙏

Love the sticker on the prop housing "

You are a very respectful and educated person. You never make prejudice comments about other people...I am saying thank you on their behalf!

I’m so happy you had a pleasant experience with domestic Nepal airlines regardless the massive delays and can’t wait to see the next content from Lukla,massive thank you and love from Nepal.

The rarest aircraft I've flown on is the Fokker 100 (lots of times when I was a child, via TAM Airlines). 😂 But the most interesting probably was the 737-200 registration "PP-SMA" from VASP, in the early 2000s - because it was the first 737-200 delivered to my country (Brazil - in 1969, if I'm not wrong) and, at that point, the oldest 737-200 in continuous operation all over the world, and for a single company. It was grounded in 2004.

Sorry about the rude passenger who took your seat initially. However, I can assure you that based on my own travels in Nepal, the people are extremely friendly, polite and some of the nicest people on the planet!

One of the best flights I took was on a RAAF C130 - H Hercules from Edinburgh (Adelaide / South Australia) to Laverton (West Melbourne, Victoria) to Fairbairn RAAF Base (Canberra), Australia. I was 15 years old, and I got taken up to the cockpit as we flew over the snowy mountains at sunset. The flight was called "The Southern Service", and 30 years later? I still love aviation. Love your vids, Noel!

Hi there Noel. Congrats for your beautiful show. Rarest aircraft I' ve ever flown are the TWA 747sp from Cairo to Athens, Malev Fokker 70 from Athens to Budapest, (on to Prague), Olympic Airways Shorts SX7 Skyvan from Athens to some Greek island (can't remember which one it was) and the Olympic Aviation Dornier DO 228 from Athens to the Island of Paros and back and from Rhodes to Kastellorizo and back. Have also flown on the Olympic Airways B707-320, B737-200, B727-283 from Athens to Cairo and Alexandria and back, a British Airways Lockheed L1011 TriStar and an Olympic Airways Airbus 300B4-102 from Athens to London and back.. Fantastic times indeed. Also BA 757'S and 767's from ATH to LHR etc. Keep up the nice work!

*Noel tries to pay for plane ticket with credit card* Ticket Agent: "We're sorry sir, but we only accept payment in cash." *Noel returns with rupees* Ticket Agent: "We're sorry sir, but we prefer payment in U.S. Dollars."

Noel, you never fail to get the great ones, mate. I’ve been on quite a few Cessna 402’s and British Aerospace ATP’s. Looking forward to flying the Tecnam P2012 with Cape Air.

Listening to those engines roar at takeoff brought back some memories for me. Flew it between 2007 and 2011 with my former employer who was one of the launch customers down in Africa.

I flew on one of these from Mohe to Heihe in Northeast China near Ruassian border. My seat was faulty so I could bend it 90 degrees back to lie on it ;)

This plane has been flying multiple flights daile for over 2 years and nothing has happened. Just by statistics they are much more safer than 777 MAX. Another point to know about flight delays is that its a mountainous country so the weather keeps on changing and the attitude/lifestyle of Nepalese amplifies the delays.

Kathmandu Airport sounds like a big McDonald’s with all that beeping sounds 😂

For anyone living in New Zealand, Air Chathams has a DC 3 which it has repainted in NAC (which was our domestic government owned airline until the late 1970s) colours. They do senic flights out of a few destinations during the summer for about 110nzd which is rougly 60 pounds Stirling. We did one which was fantastic as we got to fly over kapiti island far side.

The most unusual airliner that I’ve ridden was a Short 330 operated by Britt Airlines, a commuter airline that connected Chicago O’Hare (ORD) with nearby communities. I flew from either Peoria, Illinois or the Quad Cities (MLI) which are Davenport & Bettendorf, IOWA and Moline & Rock Island, Illinois. It was a long time ago (early 80’s) and I’ve forgotten which. The plane was small as was the pitch as my feet did NOT fit comfortably under the seat in front of me. I concluded that the Northern Irish built aircraft was designed for leprechauns.

Hie Noel they are PW127J to be exact 😜. I actually did a type rating to fly the MA60 but never got a chance to fly it and was moved onto another type. The reason you fly so low is because the climb performance suuuuucks best you can do is 1000ft/min initially which drops to below 500ft/min. On a 200nm leg you won't make to 15000 before top of descend.

In the late 90s I had the opportunity to fly on a Lockheed Electra of Reeve Aleutian 2 flts theres were the last pax carrying electras in the world

Noel Sichuan Airlines were given four MA60’s and after flying them for a few months, they put them all in long term storage, which is a condition that keeps the aircraft airworthy by performing storage maintenance including engine runs. The reason they were put in storage was the airline considered them unreliable but as the government had bought them, the airline was obliged to “maintain” them. The crews told me that they had flown AN24’s for years with very good reliability but they hated the MA60.

Twin TurboProp * Check High Wing * Check Thouroug Pratt&Witney engines * Check Landing gear under engine pods *Check 90's retro looking cockpit * Check - Noel, would you buy me one for my birthday early next month ? Rarest: Hmmm i guess Fokker F27, but somewhere i do have a picture of me in the cockpit of an Antonov-22 ! Eat that !

Nepal airlines be like what safety concerns have you seen where we are flying this to

Ooo nepal, hope you enjoy! Went there last year! I flew in and back from Manchester with Qatar airways and in Nepal I went to pokhara on a yeti airlines bae jet stream 😆

Rarest aircraft I have flown on which at the time were not very rare. Here goes Martin 404, Convair 440, DC 3,a Lockheed Electra and a Convair 880. I really liked the 880’s.

Hello, Noel! Please notice me! I am an aviation geek myself and I really do enjoy your videos after a long day at University. I just wanted to say keep up the great work and keep up the fantastic content, you are one of the very few honest, original and fun to watch youtubers (for me, at least). Again, thank you for your enjoyable content and I hope you have future plans for this channel! I would gladly support them. Cheers and safe flights all around the globe!

The Sri Lankan air force owns 2 MA 60s which they operate on civilian passenger domestic flights, since 2012 till this day ,but there has not been a single accident though.

I’m getting PTSD watching you in the Domestic departure lounge. I spent a very long and stressful time there.

I flew a Zambia Airways DC3 when I was a child. It was a bit weird because when you got on board you had to climb a 40 degree slope up to your seat and when you sat down you felt like you were on your back like an Apollo Mission astronaut, ready for lift off! Of course the aircraft leveled out as it sped down the runway. The other thing you were very aware of was the absence of a pressurized cabin which meant one had to do a lot of sweat sucking!

Splendid Video there Noel, enjoyed the ride along on the MA-60 :) Speaking for Rare Aircrafts, i personally have flown on an A340-200 and the 747-300 and even an Let-410 in Kenya not as Rare as an MA-60 or Yak-42 but not alot of These were built and im quite Happy to have flown on them when they were around :)

That plane sure lifts off quickly. Someday you can take the C919.

So all the accidents where due to human errors so they grounded the airplane !!!! They should ground the pilots 😅😅😅😅

The rarest flight I've been on was a CAAC Chinese Airlines flight acceptance test of the Hawker Siddeley Trident Super 3Bs from Hatfield up over the North Sea to Inverness in the mid 1970's, The last production aircraft from Hatfield before the introduction of the BAe 146 some 8 years later.

You make a whole different video for not normal avian you make extra different aviation content that makes you a legend reviewer for hard content and hard difficulties that you can face.i love your awesome content.

Given solid history record of Antonov-24 I trust it more than ATR.

This domestic flight cost more than the 5 low cost flights you took between London and Kathmandu!

Noel; Fantastic. There is something called Operation Induced Pilot Error (OIPE). This means the type of operation is non-standard and usually also involves marginal weather. RNAC shows that they understand that and are not pushing the weather. In this case, instead of not being a reason to fly Nepal, it should be encouraging as well as the fine cabin crew. In spite of the bad economy, Nepal has pushed always to improve equipment, training, and operations. Lukla used to be a dirt strip serviced by piston STOL planes with tent structures. Back to the MA-60. You quite correctly pointed out that many of the accidents were "pilot error". Much of this is a result of OIPE and training. Yes, the pilots screwed-up, but why? And what about the navaids available to them and non-standard procedures? 95% of instrument approaches are the ILS, or now the Vnav GPS. Simple as pie, turn on the AP and fly it down until you see the runway. You mentioned the approach at KTH. Yes, long, and a nightmare. It has step-downs. Like stairs, because of terrain, you fly down to the next altitude and level out, again and again. These are Not stable approaches, many more ways to screw-up, and yes, it happens. The EU's FAA spent a bunch of money to stabilize and standardize approaches. And a lot of people did not die. China aerospace is new. But it is strong, why, the will and money. You know, China has the fastest-growing aviation sector, anywhere. Exploding. The MA-60 was a first attempt, and it is getting a lot better. Why, because it has to. Like Japan, the quality of their products is rapidly improving and soon, "Made in China" will mean a mark of quality. They will spend whatever it takes to have the leading aviation industry in the world. Today, it takes a country to make an airliner, not just a company. That is what is happening to Boeing. With the exception of defense, the USA has no desire to lead aerospace anymore. Maybe you can tell me about Europe. Great report!

The dude trying to get in at 6:06 is absolutely brilliant haha!

Glad you got to experience the MA60. Flew one of these with Okay Airways from DLC to WEH.... upgraded to first class which was 1x2 config, aft by the door AND featured a complimentary bottle of water. There was no in-flight service for all classes otherwise. But it was only $10 more than economy. Still jealous you got tea and snacks if I am going to be perfectly honest, but then again you paid a bit more for it. Love your channel .. feel like I'm right there with you on the odd adventure, and your music selections are always great.

Enjoy these videos a lot. I can’t imagine the jet lag your having to endure.

Great vlog Noel.Many years ago my scheduled British Midland Airways flight from Heathrow to Leeds was changed from a DC9 to a Dash 7.

Rare aircraft flown in, in the 70's an RAF Vickers Varsity whilst an Air Cadet, also in the 70's an RAF AW Argosy, later in the 70's a Jet Provost, a Gnat and a Hunter then back to being a civvy. While working for BP on a trip to arctic Canada in a B737 on skis and a Twin Otter also on skis.

The emergency exit warning by the cabin crew was funny 😁

Lucky you Noel!! I’ve flown a few MA-60s in the past with 2 different airlines, but never been in the cockpit🤭😑☝🏻

this is my kind of country, this is why I love this channel, I didn't even know this metal existed

Flew a Boeing 720B Ethiopian Airlines from Rome to Asmara Eritrea in 1963 when Eritrea was Federated with Ethiopia! The 720B to me was a shortened/smaller Boeing 707 suited for the runway in Asmara. The airline was staffed by TWA flying in Ethiopian Airlines livery.

Had a chance to fly in this aircraft, also my first time taking a propjet. This aircraft do have some issues with its landing gear and landing gear sensors acording to the report, which they improved the design later, and everything else is fine. So the worst case I can imagine is a belly landing.

I flew a YS-11 in the Brazilian Amazon between 1970 and 1972. And also the DC 3

Smallest passenger plane was a Cessna 402 operated by Cape Air from Boston to Burlington, VT and Boston to Lincoln, NH. Small 9 passenger flight, one pilot, no in-flight service. They mainly fly from JFK or BOS to small cities in New England. Read they have some service in the Midwestern US and Northwestern States. Might be fun for you to get one of the smallest passenger planes on your list.

7:55 funny that New Zealand should reprimand Tonga for flying the MA-60 considering that a PAC-750XL manufactured in Hamilton, New Zealand, fatally crashed in Nepal a few short years ago.

I love your concept! My first video with you was when you ended up in Nepal. Now im hooked! (P.S Aircraft fanatic who really enjoyed you trying a Xian MA60 so I don't have to)

Most are grounded due to safety concerns so i booked myself a flight lol! Balls of steel

The main reason the MA60 is quieter is because of those Pratt Whitney turborprops. They run smooth as butter in comparison to the An-24's very reliable, but notoriously loud Ivchenko AI-24 with a big roaring gearbox.

I got to fly on a WWII B-17g last Sunday. There are only 3 left flying. My father was a pilot in the war, so for me it was a real emotional flight.

SurfShark ad ends 11:03

2:12 those guys looked like they were about to mug you

My rarest plane is the Fokker 50 in 2022 on the DUB-CFN route. As a kid growing up in de fog of Schiphol I always used to see the Fokker planes coming over me. I am too young to have seen the F27 apart from in the museums, but flying Dutch history was very much worth it.

So, after having flown in a Chinese aircraft, did you feel like you needed to fly again in an hour? ;-)

Rare plane I've been on, British Aerospace Jetstream 41

@2:55 gotta love the watch your head warning on a 2.18m (7'2") like thanks Ill make sure I dont jump

Rarest aircraft flown: two different Air France Concordes, two different Cubana IL-62s, two different Chalk’s Ocean Airways Grumman Mallards, Xinjiang Airlines IL-86, Nanjing Airlines Yun-7, Aerotaxi Let-410, Aeroejecutivos DC-3, two different Servivensa DC-3s, Delta L1011.

Dude I love your channel and videos I can’t get enough of it 😁

And what dedication to get the flights! 😊

Your video is the first thing that pops up when I search Xian MA60. I just found your channel and I find it very interesting.

Noel: Oh, I forgot to mention my experience on a unique aircraft. I am dating myself back to the 60's, was a DC 3 where you have to walk uphill to get to your seat. 'Air Ceylon' from Colombo to Jaffna. (Sri-Lanka) It was love at first site for me with aviation. ❤️👨‍✈️ have clocked a few 100K miles since then.

Greta must love this channel 😂😂😂🤣

Did you clear it for coronavirus first?

I'm pretty sure my flight on a Y7-100C with Lao Aviation was the rarest for me, I had taken a bus from Vientiane down to the resort town of Pakse but as the bus trip was so long and frankly terrifying I opted to fly back. The aircraft was like a by gone era maybe 1940s but the crew were amazing and the flight uneventful. I still can't believe I did that.

Rarest type, De Havilland Drover. 10 built I think, for the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Australia. Three engines. We flew on Great Barrier Arline flight return Ardmore, Auckland, Great Barrier return.

From the looks of the sky I say you enjoyed the constant delays of winter time for the domestic sector. Poor visibility is highly common in winter and usually delays or cancel a flights for fairer weather as poor visibility is one of the major factors for aircraft incidents in Nepal. Either way if your about in Nepal for a while I would suggest trying Buddha air which was my preferred airliner of choice when I used to live in ktm and had to fly close to the border with India to get to my school in Gangtok or (bit of nepotism here lol) Shree airlines as they are the only jet user in the domestic sector ( also two of my uncles are pilots in that airlines)