It is a sad commentary on how low our tourism trade has sunk that there was such exaggerated euphoria when a private Indian airline began daily flights from Delhi to Kathmandu this month.

When we have to thank foreign airlines for taking the initiative to rescue our own tourism industry, then things must be much worse than we imagined. The foreign airlines are not starting flights to Nepal for any altruistic reasons. They are flocking to Kathmandu and increasing frequency because there is a market here and they are filling the vacuum left by our own national airline. What is surprising is that this market is growing despite the political instability and the insurgency.

But putting all our eggs in the foreign airline basket is not going to be a longterm strategy to save our tourism industry. The only way is to strengthen the national airline, make it independent. The jubilation seen at Kathmandu airport on the arrival of the first Jet Airways flight on 12 May should have been reserved for the arrival of new equipment or service of our own national carrier. Then we would have real reason to celebrate.

But the present state of our national airline only reflects the state of the country. The airline is plagued by the same symptoms as the nation: indecision, lack of unity, dependency and malgovernance. How long can Nepal go on like this? How long can Royal Nepal Airlines keep flying like this? Are we so mentally crippled that we can't come up with a rescue plan and implement it? Do we have to wait till the political forces get our house in order to improve the airline?

Our government and tourism specialists would rather give foreign airlines concessions, rights and facilities than lift Royal Nepal Airlines out of its quagmire. Every day we see outsiders minting money on rights to lucrative international routes that should have been shared with us. There is no point blaming foreign airlines for grabbing what was effectively handed to them on a platter by our officials and their local partners.

The political interference and refusal by successive governments to guarantee the purchase or lease of new aircraft for Royal Nepal Airlines is the single biggest act of official negligence that has contributed to the flag carrier's present paralysis. We are not only short-sighted but also have short memories of the long decades that Royal Nepal Airlines served the country flawlessly, flying to remote area destinations and providing international connections.

Nepalis may have a low opinion of their own airline, but many are patriotic and would still rather fly their own flag than someone else's as long as the service is reliable. And there is no reason it can't be if we are allowed to hold our heads high, regain our confidence and stop being cynical about our abilities.

The blame for the present state of affairs must be shared by past governments, political parties who treated the airline like an employment agency, the travel trade mafia that bled it dry and a few employees of the airline. Today, when the airline is floundering, none of these people who profited at the airline's expense are willing to help bring it back to the path of recovery and success. In fact, they would rather see Royal Nepal Airlines run to the ground so they can profit some more from its privatisation.

The short-term problem is the lack of aircraft for both international and domestic operations. This has made the airline unable to provide services even on its truncated network, leading to a huge loss of revenue. The travel trade is happy enough to rely on foreign carriers because the business sustains them, but a word of caution here: reliance on outsiders will only make our aviation industry weaker. We have to recognise our airline's potential and make full use of it.

It is still possible to have a professional, well-equipped national flag carrier that we Nepalis are proud to call our own. And it is not too late for Royal Nepal Airlines to bounce back and regain some of its past reputation of a professional and reliable regional airline.

Capt Vijay Lama is head of domestic operations of Royal Nepal Airlines