A passenger plane crashed in Nepal: Russians were among the dead

At least 68 people died in a plane crash on January 15 in Nepal. The plane crashed near the city of Pokhara. It became the country's deadliest plane crash in over 30 years. CNN.

Photo: IStock

Seventy-two people - four crew members and 68 passengers - were on board the Nepalese Yeti Airlines ATR 72 aircraft at the time of the crash, Yeti Airlines spokesman Sudarshan Bartaula said. According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, there were 37 men, 25 women, three children and three babies on board.

According to Krishna's army spokesman Prasad Bhandari, the search operation was stopped after dark and resumed on January 16 in the morning. Hundreds of rescuers are still working to find the remaining four people, Bhandari said.

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Sunday's incident was the third-deadliest plane crash in the history of the Himalayan nation, according to the Aviation Safety Network. The only incidents in which more people died occurred in July and September 1992. These crashes involved Thai Airways and Pakistan International Airlines, which killed 113 and 167 people, respectively.

The Civil Aviation Authority stated that 53 passengers and all four crew members were Nepalese. There were also fifteen foreign citizens on the plane: five Indians, four Russians and two Koreans. The rest were individual citizens of Australia, Argentina, France and Ireland.

The plane was flying from the capital, Kathmandu, to Pokhara, the country's second most populous city and gateway to the Himalayas, the country's state media reported. Pokhara is located about 129 km west of Kathmandu.

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The last time the plane contacted Pokhara Airport was at approximately 10:50 local time, about 18 minutes after takeoff. Then he fell next to the Seti River Gorge. The civil aviation authorities said in a statement that rescuers from the Nepal Army and various police departments have arrived at the crash site and are conducting a rescue operation.

On January 15, a video appeared on social media showing moments before the plane crashed. The footage, apparently taken from the roof of a house in Pokhara, shows the plane flying low over a populated area and rolling over on its side. A loud explosion is heard at the end of the video.

A commission of five people was also formed to investigate the causes of the crash. According to Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman Bishnu Paudel, the commission must submit a report to the government within 45 days.
Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said he was "deeply saddened by the tragic incident."

“I sincerely call on the security personnel, all Nepalese government agencies and the public to launch an effective rescue operation,” Dahal tweeted.

The government has declared January 16 a national day of mourning to honor the victims, a spokesman for the prime minister said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as the Australian Ambassador to Nepal, expressed their condolences.

Nepalese airline Yeti Airlines said it was canceling all scheduled flights on January 16 as a sign of mourning for those killed in the plane crash.

The Himalayan country of Nepal, home to eight of the world's 14 highest mountains, including Mount Everest, has been the scene of numerous aviation accidents. The weather can change suddenly, and airstrips are usually located in hard-to-reach mountainous areas.

Last May, a Tara Air plane carrying 22 people crashed into the Himalayan mountains at an altitude of about 4000 m. According to the Aviation Safety Network database, this was the 19th plane crash in the country in 10 years and the 10th fatal for the same period.

The plane that crashed on January 15 was an ATR 72-500, a twin-propeller turbojet engine often used in the Asia-Pacific region, especially among low-cost carriers. Aircraft manufactured by ATR, a joint partnership between the European aviation companies Airbus and Leonardo, usually have a good reputation.

However, they have had accidents before. Two ATR 72s operated by the now defunct Taiwanese airline Transasia were involved in fatal crashes in July 2014 and February 2015. The second incident prompted Taiwanese authorities to temporarily suspend all ATR 72 aircraft registered on the island.

In total, various ATR 72 models were involved in 11 fatal incidents prior to Sunday's crash in Nepal, according to the Aviation Safety Network.

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An ATR statement on January 15 said she was informed of the accident.

“Our first thoughts are with everyone affected by this,” the statement said. “ATR specialists are fully engaged in supporting the investigation.”

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