A plane disappears in Nepal with 22 people on board

• A plane disappeared in Nepal with 22 people on board.
• The aircraft lost contact with the airport tower shortly after takeoff.
• An army helicopter and private helicopters continue to search for the plane.

Tragedy. A small plane flying with 22 people on a popular tourist route disappeared in the mountains of Nepal on Sunday, according to authorities. Rescuers on Sunday narrowed down the possible location of the aircraft, according to The Associated Press.

The Tara Airlines plane, on a scheduled 20-minute flight to the mountain town of Jomson, left the tourist town of Pokhara, 200 kilometers (125 miles) east of Kathmandu. The aircraft lost contact with the airport tower shortly after takeoff.

Authorities search for the plane

Police officer Ramesh Thapa said there was no information on the Twin Otter turboprop plane and a search was underway. An army helicopter and private helicopters continue to search for the plane, the Nepal Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement.

Rescue efforts have been able to narrow down a possible location for the plane but have not yet been able to visually identify it, said a tourism ministry official, who was not authorized to speak to the media, on condition of anonymity. Filed Under: Plane goes missing in Nepal.

Foreigners were on board the plane

There were six foreigners on board the plane, including four Indians and two Germans, according to a police official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

It has been raining in the area for the past few days, but flights have been operating normally. Planes on that route fly between mountains before landing in a valley. The area is popular with foreign mountaineers who travel the region’s trails, as well as Indian and Nepalese pilgrims who visit the revered Muktinah temple. Filed Under: Plane goes missing in Nepal.

It is not the first accident of this type

According to flight tracking site flightradar24.com, the 43-year-old aircraft took off from Pokhra at 0410 GMT and transmitted its last signal at 0422 GMT at an altitude of 12,825 feet (3,900 meters). In 2016, a Tata Airlines Twin Otter plane flying the same route crashed after takeoff, killing all 23 people on board, according to the AP.

In 2012, another 15 people were killed when an Agni Air plane also traveling from Pokhara to Jomsom crashed. Six people survived. In 2014, a Nepal Airlines plane crashed on a flight from Pokhara to Jumla, killing all 18 people on the plane. In 2018, a US-Bangla passenger plane from Bangladesh crashed on landing in Kathmandu, killing 49 of the 71 people on board. Filed Under: Plane goes missing in Nepal.

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