At least 18 people were killed when a small plane crashed and caught fire while it was taking off from Nepal’s capital Kathmandu on Wednesday, officials said.
The plane was carrying two crew members and 17 technicians to Pokhara city to repair another aircraft, officials said.
“Only the captain was rescued alive and is receiving treatment at a hospital,” said Tej Bahadur Poudyal, the spokesman for Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport.
Television visuals showed fire fighters trying to put out the blaze and thick black smoke rising into the sky. They also showed the plane flying a little above the runway and then tilting before it crashed.
JULY 11, 2023
Six people were killed in a helicopter crash in central Nepal. The chopper, which departed from Solukhunvhu district, home to Mount Everest and other high mountain peaks, had five Mexican nationals and one Nepali pilot on board.
JAN 15, 2023
A twin-engine ATR 72 aircraft carrying 72 people, operated by Nepal’s Yeti Airlines, crashed in Pokhara, killing all on board.
It was the worst air crash in the country since 1992 when all 167 people aboard a Pakistan International Airlines plane were killed when it ploughed into a hill as it tried to land in Kathmandu.
MAY 29, 2022
Sixteen Nepalis, four Indians and two Germans died on a De Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter aircraft that crashed 15 minutes after taking off from Pokhara, 125 km (80 miles) west of Kathmandu.
FEB 27, 2019
A helicopter crashed in bad weather in eastern Nepal, killing all seven people on board, including the tourism minister.
MARCH 12, 2018
Fifty-one of 71 people on a Bangladeshi airliner operated by US-Bangla Airlines died when it crashed in cloudy weather as it came in to land at the Nepalese capital’s hill-ringed airport.
FEB 26, 2016
Two people were feared dead after a small plane crashed in western Nepal’s Kalikot district. It was operated by Kasthamandap Airlines.
FEB 24, 2016
A small plane crashed in bad weather, killing all 23 people on board. The Twin Otter aircraft, operated by Tara Air, was on a flight from Pokhara to Jomsom in western Nepal.
FEB 16, 2014
All 18 people on a small plane that crashed in bad weather were killed. The Twin Otter aircraft was operated by state-run Nepal Airlines Corp.
SEPT 28, 2012
A small propeller-driven Dornier aircraft struck a bird and crashed shortly after takeoff from Kathmandu, killing 19 people, including seven British and five Chinese passengers.
SEPT 25, 2011
A small plane carrying foreign tourists to view Mount Everest crashed in bad weather near Kathmandu, killing all 19 people on board.
The Beech aircraft was operated by private airline Buddha Air.
DEC 16, 2010
A small plane crashed in the Himalayan foothills of remote east Nepal, killing all 22 people onboard. The Twin Otter aircraft was operated by Tara Air.
AUG 24, 2010
Fourteen people – including four Americans, a Japanese and British national – were killed when their small plane crashed in bad weather in Nepal. It was operated by privately held Agni Air.
OCT 8, 2008
A small Twin Otter plane crashed in the remote mountains of northeast Nepal, killing at least 18 people, mostly foreigners.
MARCH 4, 2008
Four U.N. arms monitors were among at least 10 people killed in a helicopter crash in Nepal.
JUNE 21, 2006
A Twin Otter passenger plane operated by Yeti Airlines crashed minutes before landing in the west of the country, killing all nine people on board.
MAY 25, 2004
A Twin Otter cargo plane crashed in the Mount Everest region, killing its three crew. It was operated by Yeti Airlines.
AUG 22, 2002
Another Twin Otter plane, carrying foreign tourists, slammed into a mountain in bad weather in Nepal, killing all 18 people on board. It was operated by Shangrila Air.
JULY 17, 2002
Four people were feared dead after a twin-engined aircraft crashed into a mountain in west Nepal minutes before it was due to land.
JULY 27, 2000
A Canadian-built Twin Otter passenger plane crashed in western Nepal, killing all 25 people on board. It was operated by state-owned Royal Nepal Airlines.
Other visuals showed rescue workers rummaging through the charred remains of the plane, strewn in lush green fields.
Bodies were carried to ambulances on stretchers as local residents looked on, the television showed.
The plane was a Bombardier BBDb.TO, officials said, and media reported it belonged to local Saurya Airlines. The airport had been temporarily closed, the officials added.
Saurya operates domestic flights in Nepal with two Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jets, both around 20 years old, according to Flight Radar 24.
Nepal has been criticised for a poor air safety record, and nearly 350 people have died in plane or helicopter crashes in the Himalayan country since 2000.
The deadliest incident occurred in 1992, when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crashed into a hillside while approaching Kathmandu, killing 167 people.
Most recently, at least 72 people were killed in a Yeti airlines crash in January 2023 that was later attributed to the pilots mistakenly cutting off power.
