Eighteen people lost their lives after a plane crashed and caught fire while taking off from Kathmandu, Nepal's capital, on Wednesday. The pilot, who is currently receiving treatment in hospital, is the sole survivor of the fatal accident, having been rescued from the burning wreckage.
The Saurya Airlines test flight was carrying 17 company employees, including technical staff, along with two crew members. The plane was bound for Pokhara, a popular Himalayan tourism hub in western Nepal.
Nepal's aviation industry has long been criticized for its poor safety record, attributed to factors such as unpredictable weather and lax regulations. The ill-fated flight, part of a routine maintenance check, crashed at around 11:15 local time (05:30 GMT), mere minutes after taking off from Tribhuvan International Airport. This information was confirmed by a statement from the Nepal Civil Aviation Authority's search and rescue coordination center.
Police spokesperson Dan Bahadur Karki informed BBC Nepali that the pilot sustained injuries to his eyes and forehead but is not in life-threatening condition.Airport chief Jagannath Niraula told BBC Nepali that the accident occurred almost immediately after takeoff, within a minute. Although airport authorities have yet to confirm the exact cause of the disaster, initial assessments suggest the plane flew in the wrong direction. "As soon as it took off, it turned right, [when it] should have turned left," Mr. Niraula explained.
Footage of the incident showed the plane tilting above the runway before crashing into flames. The wreckage quickly became engulfed in fire and smoke. Photos from the scene depicted rescue workers navigating through the charred remains of the aircraft, with significant portions of the plane completely blackened. Some images also appeared to show parts of the plane inside an air freight container.
Fire engines and ambulances responded swiftly to the crash site. 17 of the deceased were Nepali nationals, while one was a Yemeni engineer.. Saurya Airlines marketing head Mukesh Khanal told Reuters that the plane was scheduled for a month-long maintenance beginning Thursday. The cause of the crash remains unclear.
Kathmandu's airport temporarily closed following the incident but reopened within hours, Reuters reported. The crash underscores ongoing safety concerns within Nepal's aviation sector.