Eighteen people were killed when a Saurya Airlines plane crashed and caught fire during takeoff from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, officials said. The plane carried two crew members and 17 technicians and was headed for maintenance work in Pokhara.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, the Bombardier CRJ-200 registered 9N-AME, veered off to the right and crashed on the east side of the runway shortly after takeoff at 11:15 a.m. The aircraft was scheduled to undergo maintenance for a month.
Tej Bahadur Poudyal, spokesman for Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport, confirmed that the sole survivor was the pilot, who was receiving treatment at a local hospital. “Everything was normal before the flight was ready to take off,” said Mukesh Khanal, marketing head of Saurya Airlines. The investigation is ongoing.
Eyewitnesses shared that the plane burst into flames upon impact. Television visuals showed firefighters battling the blaze, with thick black smoke billowing into the sky. “The plane was flying low and then tilted sharply to the right before crashing,” said a resident who witnessed the incident.
The crash, which occurred on July 24, 2024, has once again highlighted Nepal’s poor air safety record. Nearly 360 people have died in plane or helicopter crashes in the country since 2000. The country’s challenging topography, sudden weather changes, and the use of outdated aircraft contribute to the high incidence of aviation accidents.
Nepal’s Prime Minister, K.P. Sharma Oli, visited the crash site and urged patience in a social media post. An emergency cabinet meeting was convened to form a panel to investigate the crash, as confirmed by a government spokesman. The government is committed to improving aviation safety standards.
Kathmandu airport was temporarily closed following the crash but reopened within hours. The aircraft was scheduled to undergo maintenance at the newly opened Pokhara Regional Airport, which has state-of-the-art maintenance hangars.
The incident is reminiscent of other crashes in Nepal’s aviation history. In January 2023, a Yeti Airlines crash killed at least 72 people, and in 1992, a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crash claimed 167 lives. Due to safety concerns, these frequent accidents have led to the European Union banning Nepali carriers from flying into its airspace.
