18 dead in Nepal plane crash, pilot sole survivor
The bodies of 18 people have been recovered following a plane crash at Nepal's Kathmandu airport on Wednesday, the Kathmandu Post reported, adding that the captain of the aircraft was the only survivor and has been rushed to hospital for medical treatment.
The Saurya Airlines aircraft, bound for Pokhara in central Nepal, crashed during takeoff at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu due to runway excursion, the Kathmandu Post quoted TIA spokesperson Subash Jha as saying.
The plane was carrying two crew members and 17 technicians to Pokhara, Nepal to repair another aircraft when the incident occurred.
One of the deceased was a foreigner, the AFP reported, citing police spokesperson Dan Bahadur Karki.
"We are in the process of taking them for post-mortem," he told AFP.
The airport had been temporarily closed following the crash but reopened within hours.
Television visuals showed firefighters 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.
Other visuals showed rescue workers rummaging through the charred remains of the plane and bodies being carried to ambulances on stretchers as residents looked on.
(With input from Reuters)
25 Jul 2024