Missing Nepal Plane Has Crashed, Aircraft Located; Family From Odisha Was Onboard

Kathmandu/Bhubaneswar: A family of four from Odisha’s capital were onboard the aircraft that went missing in Nepal on Sunday morning in bad weather and mountainous terrain and was later confirmed to have crashed.

Tara Air identified them as Ashok Kumar Tripathi, Dhanush Tripathi, Ritika Tripathi and Vaibhawi Tripathi, a report in the Economic Times said. While Ashok was living in Bhubaneswar, his family was staying in Mumbai. A Delhi-based travel agency arranged the family’s trip.

There were 22 people on board, including three crew members. The plane crashed near Kowang village.

“According to the information given by locals, the Tara Air plane has crashed at the mouth of the Lamche river under the landslide of Manapathi Himal. Nepal Army is moving towards the site from the ground and air route,” Army spokesperson Narayan Silwal was quoted as saying by ANI.

Besides the family from Bhubaneswar, two Germans and 13 Nepali passengers were onboard the Twin Otter aircraft (9N-AET) belonging to Tara Air. The three-member crew are Captain Prabhakar Prasad Ghimire, co-pilot Utsav Pokhrel and air hostess Kismi Thapa.

According to latest reports, Tribhuvan International Airport chief said the crashed aircraft has been found at Kowang in Mustang.

Earlier, after bad weather forced many search helicopters to turn back in the morning, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) said a Nepal Army helicopter has landed near the possible crash site.

Prem Nath Thakur, general manager of Tribhuvan International Airport, said a Nepal Army helicopter with 10 soldiers and two employees of the authority has landed on the bank of a river near Narshang Monastery, a report in Republica said.

According to him, Captain Ghimire’s cellphone is still ringing and the helicopter landed near the possible crash site by tracking his phone.

The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu has set up emergency hotline number (+977-9851107021) to provide information on the incident.