When it crashed with 72 people on board the plane was en route from the capital Kathmandu to Pokhara .
Pokhara is a bustling tourist town about 200km (124 miles) west of Kathmandu. At least 66 people have been killed after a passenger plane crashed in Nepal on Sunday morning. The plane was flying from the capital Kathmandu to Pokhara when it crashed.
Nepal police spokesperson told Al Jazeera, adding that no survivors have been found so far. There were 72 people on the twin-engine ATR 72 aircraft operated by Nepal’s Yeti Airlines, including four crew members, said airline spokesman Sudarshan Bartaula. So far, 66 bodies have been recovered from the site.
Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has called an emergency cabinet meeting after the plane crash, a government statement said. He posted on Twitter “I am deeply saddened by the sad and tragic accident of Yeti Airlines ANC ATR 72 which was flying from Kathmandu to Pokhara with passengers.”
Local official Gurudutta Dhakal said a committee to investigate the crash has been formed by the government. “Responders have already reached there and trying to douse the fire. All agencies are now focused on first dousing the fire and rescuing the passengers.”
An eyewitness said he saw the aircraft spinning violently in the air after it began to attempt a landing before falling nose-first towards its left and then crashing into the gorge. Local television showed thick black smoke billowing from the crash site as rescue workers and crowds of people gathered around the wreckage of the aircraft.
The aviation authority said in a statement “The plane caught fire after the crash. There was smoke everywhere,” the eyewitness added. The craft made contact with the airport from Seti Gorge at 10:50am (05:05 GMT), “Then it crashed.”
“Half of the plane is on the hillside,” said Arun Tamu, a local resident, who told Reuters he reached the site minutes after the plane went down.