A private airliner crashed while taking off from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on the morning of July 24. The accident occurred around 11 am when a Saurya Airlines flight bound for Pokhara took off.
Citing airport security chief Arjun Chand Thakuri, the media reported that among the passengers on board the plane were two crew members and 17 technicians.
“The plane skidded off the Kathmandu airport runway and crashed into a field east of the runway before bursting into flames,” airport officials added.
“The pilot of the aircraft has been taken to the hospital,” a security official posted at the airport told news agency PTI, without giving details. “The fire on board the aircraft has been extinguished,” the official told the news agency. According to Flight Radar 24 data, Saurya Airlines, which the plane is part of, operates domestic flights in Nepal with two Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jets, both of which are about 20 years old.
Nepal Airplane Crash: A Frequently Occurring Event
Nepal has come under fire recently for its poor aviation safety record. In January last year, a Yeti Airlines plane crashed due to pilot error, killing 72 people on board.
Nepal, which attracts many tourists, is experiencing an aviation boom as airlines fly to hard-to-reach areas and many foreign mountaineers also take to air travel.
But the hilly terrain has seen a number of fatal accidents in recent years, which experts say is due to a lack of training and maintenance.
Nepal’s deadliest accident was in 1992, when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crashed into a hillside on approach to Kathmandu, killing 167 people.
Nepal is also known for having some of the most challenging and remote airstrips, surrounded by snow-capped peaks and harsh weather.
