KATHMANDU, May 16 -- Commercial flights from the Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) began starting Monday. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba formally inaugurated Nepal's second international airport, the GBIA today. The opening was marked by a successful landing of an international commercial flight.

Kuwait's Jazeera Airways made the first commercial international flight to the GBIA. A Jazeera Airways aircraft landed in Bhairahawa at 7:08 AM on Monday.The landing plane was greeted with a water cannon salute and applause. At 6:56 AM on Monday, a narrow-body aircraft of the Nepal Airlines Corporation also made a commercial domestic flight.

The project came into operation four years after the scheduled time. The initial cost of the...