Breaking News : Plane Crash in Kathmandu Kills 18, Pilot Critically Injured

A plane has crashed in Nepal's capital Kathmandu. 18 of the 19 people on board the plane have died. The injured pilot Captain Manish Shakya has been rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The plane was going from Kathmandu to Pokhara.

The plane took off from Tribhuvan Airport at around 11 am. It crashed shortly after this. The 9N-AME plane belonged to Surya Airlines. Of the people killed in the accident, 17 were staff of Surya Airlines, while the remaining 2 were crew members.

According to the Kathmandu Post, immediately after the accident, a team of police and fire fighters reached the spot for rescue operation. According to news agency PTI, a security official said that after the crash, the plane caught fire. It was immediately extinguished.

Pictures from the spot show smoke rising. However, the reason for the accident has not been revealed yet.

Eyewitnesses present at the scene, while talking to Kathmandu Post, said, "The plane was taking off from the southern end of the runway. Suddenly it jerked and caught fire. After this it fell into a pit between the Buddha Air Hangar and the radar station on the eastern side of the runway."

68 people died in a plane crash in Nepal last year Earlier, a major plane crash took place in Nepal on January 14, 2023. A Yeti Airlines plane crashed in Pokhara, 205 km from Kathmandu. It was an ATR-72 plane, carrying 68 passengers and four crew members.

The plane collided with a hill just 10 seconds before landing at Pokhara International Airport. This caused the plane to catch fire and fall into the ditch. All 68 people died in the accident.