Nepal plane crash with 72 onboard leaves at least 68 dead

[Still Waters]

At least 68 people were confirmed dead and hope was fading for any survivors after a plane with 72 onboard crashed in Nepal, the Himalayan country’s deadliest aviation disaster in three decades.

“Thirty-one [bodies] have been taken to hospitals,” said police official, AK Chhetri, adding that another 36 were still in the 300-metre gorge the aircraft plunged into at the site in Pokhara in central Nepal.

“The aircraft crashed into a gorge so it is difficult to bring the bodies. Search and rescue is ongoing. No survivors have been found yet,” said army spokesperson, Krishna Prasad Bhandari.

Yeti Airlines, which operated the flight, confirmed there were 72 people onboard – 68 passengers and four crew. According to an airport official, there were 15 foreign nationals among the passengers, including one Australian, one French, one Argentinian, four Russians, five Indians, two South Koreans and one person from Ireland.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/15/nepal-plane-crash-with-72-onboard-leaves-at-least-16-dead

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-15/nepal-plane-crash-kills-at-least-68-people-in-pokhara/101857234

[pellinore]

Filmed by passenger at time of accident:

 

[Still Waters]

A new airport in Nepal - the destination of a plane that crashed last weekend - did not have a working instrument landing system.

That will remain the case until 26 February, 56 days after the airport opened on 1 January, said Jagannath Niroula from Nepal's Civil Aviation Authority.

An instrument landing system is extra useful when pilots are struggling with visibility, although conditions on Sunday were good, with low winds, clear skies and temperatures well above freezing.

The crash site, at a height of 2,700ft (820 metres), is only a mile from the runway.

Yeti Airlines said the plane's cockpit voice recorder would be analysed locally, while the flight data recorder will be sent to France. Both were retrieved on Monday.

While the cause of the crash remains unclear, aviation experts said video of it appeared to indicate the twin-engine ATR-500 went into a stall.

https://news.sky.com/story/nepal-plane-crash-no-landing-guiding-system-at-new-airport-where-stricken-aircraft-was-heading-12790247

[pellinore]

46 minutes ago, Still Waters said:

A new airport in Nepal - the destination of a plane that crashed last weekend - did not have a working instrument landing system.

That will remain the case until 26 February, 56 days after the airport opened on 1 January, said Jagannath Niroula from Nepal's Civil Aviation Authority.

An instrument landing system is extra useful when pilots are struggling with visibility, although conditions on Sunday were good, with low winds, clear skies and temperatures well above freezing.

The crash site, at a height of 2,700ft (820 metres), is only a mile from the runway.

Yeti Airlines said the plane's cockpit voice recorder would be analysed locally, while the flight data recorder will be sent to France. Both were retrieved on Monday.

While the cause of the crash remains unclear, aviation experts said video of it appeared to indicate the twin-engine ATR-500 went into a stall.

https://news.sky.com/story/nepal-plane-crash-no-landing-guiding-system-at-new-airport-where-stricken-aircraft-was-heading-12790247

The new airport had been opened just two weeks ago. The pilots were experienced on the route. There is some evidence they initially approached the old runway, and were unable to manoeuvre the plane safely to get aligned on the new runway when the mistake was realised. There is an airline thread here if anyone is interested:Nepal Plane Crash - Page 4 - PPRuNe Forums

Edited January 21 by pellinore