Mr. Truth, Fortune put the event under the 101 dumbest moments in business.  In terms of a cultural aspect, to each his own: Can't comment on the sacrificing bit (even though I personally don't believe in animal sacrifices).  However, as a business move, this has cost the national carrier dearly.  On the flight's return from HongKong the next day, the plane returned half-full.  Some cancelled their tkts because of the international frenzy caused by this event thanks to the BBC and other international media houses.  This "sacrifice" in the waseterner's eyes was seen as a "fix" to the problem instead of having aeronautical engineers adressing the issue...All in all, its just a case of Nepal Airlines (and most other Nep businesses) not having a well-versed spokesman who could've put and explained the sacrifice in a better/rational way to the media.