Kathmandu: At least 68 of the 72 people on board the plane that crashed near Pokhara airport on Sunday morning have died, Reuters reported quoting Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) officials.
There were 68 passengers and four crew members on the domestic Yeti Airlines flight en route from Kathmandu to Pokhara.
Moments before the twin-engine ATR 72 aircraft was due to land at Pokhara airport, it crashed into a river gorge on the bank of Seti River.
There were 5 Indian passengers among 15 foreign nationals on the flight.
There were 53 Nepali people, 4 Russian, 2 Koreans, 1 each from Argentina, Ireland, Australia and France on board, the airline said in a statement.
The aircraft burst into raging flames after crashing, making rescue operations difficult at the wreckage site.
Watch video clip posted by ANI on Twitter:
#WATCH | A passenger aircraft crashed at Pokhara International Airport in Nepal today. 68 passengers and four crew members were onboard at the time of crash. Details awaited. pic.twitter.com/DBDbTtTxNc
— ANI (@ANI) January 15, 2023
Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda called an emergency cabinet meeting soon after the crash, and
The Nepalese government formed a five-member commission of inquiry at an emergency meeting called by Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda soon after the accident.
According to CAAN, the 25-minute flight took off from Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport at 10.33 am and crashed just before 11 am.
Expressing his condolence, India’s Civil Aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia tweeted: “The loss of lives in a tragic plane crash in Nepal is extremely unfortunate. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the bereaved. Om Shanti.”
