Plane crash at Nepal’s Kathmandu airport kills 18; pilot only survivor

Saurya Airlines plane carrying two crew members and 17 passengers crashes shortly after takeoff and catches fire.

A passenger plane has crashed and caught fire shortly after taking off from Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, killing 18 people, aviation officials say.

The pilot was the only survivor of Wednesday’s crash and was being treated in hospital, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal said in a statement.

Nineteen people were on the test flight conducted by the domestic carrier Saurya Airlines, including technical staff members and two crew members.

The incident took place right after the 11:11am (05:26 GMT) takeoff of the 50-seat Bombardier CRJ200, the aviation authority said. The plane then turned right and crashed into the eastern section of the airport, the statement said. It was on its way to the resort town of of Pokhara. The cause of the crash is being investigated.

A doctor at Kathmandu Medical College Hospital told The Associated Press news agency that the pilot had suffered injuries to the eyes “but is not in any danger”.

Eighteen Nepalis, including one child, and a Yemeni national were on the plane, the aviation authority confirmed.

The bodies were taken to the TU Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for autopsy.

Saurya Airlines 9N-AME crash@TIACAO2 Press Release – 2 pic.twitter.com/5LzBHpqhZI

— Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (@hello_CAANepal) July 24, 2024

Images of the aftermath shared by Nepal’s military showed the plane’s fuselage split apart and charred.

Broadcast images showed the bodies being carried to ambulances on stretchers. Other visuals showed rescue workers rummaging through the burned remains of the plane.

Tribhuvan International Airport, the main airport in Nepal for international and domestic