Helicopter crash
Six dead in helicopter crash. According to aviation authorities, all six occupants aboard a tourist helicopter in Nepal were killed when it crashed shortly after takeoff in the Everest region on Tuesday.
The Manang Air flight from near Lukla, the gateway for climbing expeditions to the world’s highest peak, was carrying five Mexican passengers and a Nepali pilot.
The helicopter lost communication roughly 10 minutes after takeoff at 10:04 a.m. (04:19 GMT).
“Six bodies have been found at the crash site,” said Gyanendra Bhul of Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority to AFP.
Two helicopters and ground teams have been dispatched for search and rescue.
“The helicopters were unable to land close to the area due to weather conditions.” “Teams on foot are on their way there to recover the bodies,” Bhul said.
Local search-and-rescue personnel at the crash site were unable to be reached for comment.
According to his office, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “expressed grief” at the event.
Nepal’s private helicopter sector is thriving, transporting tourists and cargo to remote regions of the Himalayan country where road access is limited or non-existent.
However, the country is infamous for its poor air safety, and Tuesday’s tragedy is the latest in a long line of aviation mishaps.
In May, a helicopter crashed in eastern Nepal after dropping off items for a hydroelectricity project, killing one and injuring four.
The Himalayan Republic features some of the world’s most remote and difficult runways, flanked by snow-capped peaks and with approaches that even experienced pilots find difficult.
In the highlands, the weather can also change suddenly, causing hazardous flying conditions.
Inadequate training and maintenance have also plagued Nepal’s aviation sector.
In January, a plane disaster in the country’s west killed all 72 people on board.
As it approached the central city of Pokhara, the Yeti Airlines jet crashed into a deep valley, shattered into pieces, and exploded into flames.
In 2018, a US-Bangla Airlines plane crash-landed near Kathmandu’s notoriously difficult international airport, killing 51 people and seriously injuring 20.
In 1992, in Nepal’s deadliest air accident, all 167 people aboard a Pakistan International Airlines plane died when it crashed on approach to Kathmandu airport.
Just two months earlier a Thai Airways aircraft had crashed near the same airport, killing 113 people.
The European Union has banned all Nepali carriers from its airspace over safety concerns.