Nepal Airlines, formerly known as Royal Nepal Airlines, is the state airline of Nepal. With its main base at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu the airline operates more than 30 domestic and 7 international routes. The mountainous terrain of the kingdom could not be accessed by rail or road and the introduction of air travel provided a boost to the tourism industry.

The airline commenced its operations in July 1958 as Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation (RNAC) with a single Douglas DC-3 Dakota aircraft. Initial services were restricted to Simara, Pokhara, Biratnagar and Indian cities like Patna, Calcutta and Delhi. In 1970, the addition of Twin Otter and Pilatus Porter aircrafts meant that the remote and mountainous regions could now be accessed. Further extension of the runway of Kathmandu in 1972 resulted in the airline acquiring Hawker Siddeley HS-748 and Boeing 727 which were later replaced by two Boeing 757s.

Nepal Airlines maintains international branches in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Bangkok, Dubai, Frankfurt, London, Osaka, Calcutta, Delhi, Mumbai and Patna. However, operations have now been discontinued to Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata, Dhaka, Frankfurt, Karachi and London Gatwick.