Everest Tourist Plane Crashes, Killing 19

Nepalese police recover the body of a passenger who died when a Buddha Air Beechcraft 1900D aircraft crashed at Kot Danda in Lalitpur, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, on September 25. (Prakesh Mathema/AFP/Getty Images)

A small tourist plane crashed while heading to Mount Everest on Sunday, killing all 19 people on board, according to media reports.

The plane was carrying 16 tourists on a trip to view Everest and other Himalayan mountain peaks, but went down as it was returning to Kathmandu, the capital city, according to The Himalayan Times.

Two Americans, 10 Indian nationals, 6 Nepalis, and one Japanese tourist, were on board the aircraft, according to the newspaper. The three crew members were also killed.

The airplane's black box was found at the site and Nepalese authorities said they would do an investigation into the crash, according to the Times.

Police spokesman Binod Singh told AFP, The rescue efforts have been hampered by heavy rain and confirmed the nationalities of those who died. The privately owned aircraft lost contact with air traffic controllers at around 7:30 a.m.

Reports said that the weather at the time was very foggy and there was low visibility, which could have factored into the crash.

Hemant Arjyal, an aviation specialist, told The Hindu newspaper, The clouds this morning were rather low but not moisture laden.

It appears that the aircraft took the visual approach and the pilot got in and out of the cloud. The plane seems to have [been] too close to the hill and touched it, Arjyal added.




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