Kathmandu: A tragic incident occurred as a small plane caught fire after skidding off the runway at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu and crashed on Wednesday while trying to takeoff, killing 18 out of 19 passengers. Only the pilot of the CRJ200 aircraft managed to survive the deadly incident.
The plane was carrying two crew members and 17 technicians to Pokhara city for maintenance checks, Airport Security Chief Arjun Chand Thakuri said. According to the Civil Aviation Authority, the 9N-AME/CRJ 200 call sign aircraft of Saurya Air crashed at 11:11 am (local time) on Wednesday while taking off from Tribhuvan International Airport to Pokhara.
The plane belonged to local Saurya Airlines, which operates domestic flights in Nepal with two Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jets, both around 20 years old, according to Flight Radar 24. According to eyewitnesses, the plane was taking off from the Southern end of the runway when it suddenly flipped with the wing tip hitting the ground.
Who is the lone survivor of Nepal crash?
The captain has been identified as Captain Manish Ratna Shakya, who is an airline pilot of the CRJ200 regional aircraft and also the Chief of Operations at Saurya Airlines, according to the official website of the airline. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has been working at Saurya Airlines for over nine years, after a nearly three-year tenure at Simrik Airlines. He has completed his education at St. Xavier's School.
The 37-year-old Captain Shakya rescued from the wreckage and taken to KMC Hospital, Sinamangal for treatment, according to the police. He is the lone survivor of the crash, as 18 out of 19 passengers aboard the aircraft have been confirmed killed. The pilot has injuries to the eyes but is not in any danger, said a doctor at the hospital.
Nepal's dismal safety record
Nepal has been criticised for its poor air safety record, with the deadliest incident occurring in 1992, when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crashed into a hillside while approaching Kathmandu, killing 167 people. In January 2023, a Yeti Airlines flight crashed near the central city of Pokhara, killing all 72 passengers on board, including five Indians.
Prior to that, a Tara flight with 22 people on board, including four Indians from Thane, crashed in Nepal’s mountainous Mustang district on May 29, 2022, killing all people on board. Bad weather seems to be the main factor behind plane crashes in Nepal. The mountainous country sees frequent fluctuations in the weather and it is difficult to operate a flight without a proper weather forecasting mechanism. In addition, Nepal has some of the world's most strenuous and remote runways, which pose a challenge for even experienced pilots.
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