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Nepal Plane Crash News Live Updates: At least 68 people on board Yeti Airlines aircraft were confirmed dead, after the flight crashed into a river gorge in Nepal on Sunday, 15 January, minutes before landing at Pokhara International Airport. This has been termed Nepal's deadliest air crash since 1992.
Spokesperson for the Nepal Army, Krishna Prasad Bhandari has indicated that no one has been rescued alive as of yet. Search operations will resume on Monday.
There were five Indian passengers on board the 72-seater ATR-72 aircraft, confirmed the Indian Embassy and airlines. All five are now confirmed to be dead.
Locals and rescuers at the crash site in Nayagaun.
Debris from the ill-fated ATR-72 aircraft.
Police and rescuers on site.
Smoke rises from the crash site at Nayagaun.
The aircraft took off from Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport for Pokhara.
Nearly 350 people have died since 2000 in plane or helicopter crashes in Nepal
Pokhara International Airport has been closed for all inbound and outbound flights.
Among the passengers were also three infants, three children, and 62 adults.
The Indian Embassy in Nepal has issued helpline numbers for the friends and family of the Indians who were travelling on board flight 9N-ANC.
Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said on Twitter, "I am deeply saddened by the tragic accident of Yeti Airlines ANC ATR 72, which was flying from Kathmandu to Pokhara with passengers. I sincerely appeal to the security personnel, all agencies of the Nepal government and the general public to start an effective rescue."
Rescuers have recovered at least 29 bodies from the crash site, local media outlet The Kathmandu Post reported.
The aircraft with the call sign 9N-ANC took off from Kathmandu at 10.30 am, General Manager at Tribhuvan International Airport, Premnath Thakur, said to local media.
According to CAAN, the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, the passengers included 53 Nepalis, five Indians, four Russians, one Irish, one Australian, one Argentinian, two Koreans, and one French national.
Nepal PM, Pushpa Kamal Dahal is currently holding an emergency Cabinet meeting, local media reported. He will fly to Pokhara soon after, l
The Indian Embassy in Nepal has issued helpline numbers for the friends and family of those on board flight 9N-ANC.
"Deeply saddened by the crash of a plane carrying 72 passengers and crew members, including some Indians in Pokhara. We express our heartfelt condolences to families of deceased. Our thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by this tragedy," the Ambassador of Nepal to India said after the crash.
Yeti Airlines confirmed that the aircraft contacted the control tower one last time at 10.50 am before going off radar.
The government of Nepal has declared a one-day national mourning on 16 January in wake of the aircraft crash.
Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', along with Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane will arrive in Pokhara to assess the situation. A five-member team has been formed to investigate the reasons for the crash, ANI reported.
Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane's visit to Pokhara has been cancelled, the Nepal Secretariat has said.
Yeti Airlines said that the five Indians onboard have been identified as:
Abhisekh Kushwaha
Bishal Sharma
Anil Kumar Rajbhar
Sonu Jaiswal, and
Sanjaya Jaiswal.
Some of the passengers have been hospitalised, the airlines said. The condition of the Indian passengers is not known yet.
So far, at least 68 bodies have been recovered, The Rescue co-ordination Centre at Tribhuvan International Airport said. The search continues for the last four.
Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and External Affairs Minister S Jaishanker condoled the deaths of the victims of the plane crash on Twitter.
The Nepal Civil Aviation Authority issued a statement about the aircraft crash late 15 January evening, stating that 68 deaths had been confirmed in the crash.
Search operations have been halted for today, Army officials said, and four passengers are yet to be found.
Responding to the aircraft crash in Nepal, ATR, the Franco-Italian aircraft manufacturer, said in a statement:
Yeti Airlines tweeted that it would cancel all flights on 16 January save for emergency and rescue flights, in light of the crash.
In a tweet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his thoughts and prayers to the bereaved families of the victims of the aircraft crash.
Spokesperson for the Nepal Army, Krishna Prasad Bhandari has indicated that no one has been rescued alive as of yet. Search operations will resume on Monday.
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