Nepal plane crash: Saurya Airlines plane with 19 people onboard crashes during takeoff in Kathmandu

A Saurya Airlines plane crashed at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu on Wednesday at around 11 AM. The plane crashed as it took off from Kathmandu for Pokhara. The plane carried solely the airline's technical personnel.

Police and firemen are carrying conducting rescue efforts.

TIA information officer Gyanendra Bhul confirmed the incident and said that some technical staff members were on board the aircraft at the time of the accident.

18 people were killed in the incident while Manish Shakya, the pilot of the plane survived the crash and has been taken to the Kathmandu Medical College Hospital for treatment, said a doctor at the hospital who was not authorized to speak to media.

The pilot has injuries to the eyes but is not in any danger, the doctor said. 

Local media images showed smoke rising and plane wreckage scattered all over a ditch. A fire has been brought under control. T

Tribhuvan International Airport, the main airport in Nepal for international and domestic flights, has been closed as emergency crew worked. It is the monsoon season in Kathmandu but was not raining at the time of the crash. Visibility was low across the capital, however. Saurya Airlines operates the Bombardier CRJ 200 on domestic routes.

Jashoda Regmi, information officer of the Pokhara International Airport, said that Saurya Airlines has applied to keep the aircraft in the hangar of Pokhara International Airport for a month from Wednesday.

Earlier in January 2023, a Yeti Airlines plane with 68 passengers and crew on board crashed in Pokhara Nepal. All 68 passengers were killed in the accident.

With agency inputs