18 People Killed After Plane Crashes During Takeoff, Leaving Pilot as Lone Survivor

Marina Watts

24 July 2024 at 5:23 pm·2-min read

An airport chief said the Nepal crash "happened as soon as it left the ground, in not even a minute"

<p>Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty</p> Saurya Airlines — Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty
Saurya Airlines' plane after it crashed at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on July 24, 2024

A pilot was the sole survivor of a plane crash in Nepal's capital city, Kathmandu.

On the morning of Wednesday, July 24, a plane carrying mostly Saurya Airlines company employees crashed when it caught fire while taking off from Tribhuvan International Airport around 11:15 a.m. local time, according to the BBC and the Associated Press.

Airport chief Jagannath Niraula told BBC Nepali that the crash "happened as soon as it left the ground, in not even a minute", per the BBC.

Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority said that the plane “crashed on the east side of the runway” before bursting into flames, per CBS News.

Authorities say that 18 bodies were recovered, while the pilot was rescued from the burning debris. He sustained only injuries to his eyes and forehead and is currently being treated at a hospital.

The airport closed following the crash but was open again within hours, per Reuters.

<p>Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty</p> Saurya Airlines' plane after it crashed at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on July 24, 2024 — Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty
Saurya Airlines' plane after it crashed at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu on July 24, 2024

<p>Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty</p> Site of Saurya Airlines plane crash — Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty
Site of Saurya Airlines plane crash

The flight was en route to Pokhara for a standard maintenance appointment at the time, according to the BBC.

CBS News reported that videos online showed the plane descending at a sharp angle before getting engulfed in flames following the crash.

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A cause of the crash has not yet officially been determined, but Niraula told BBC Nepali that an initial assessment showed that as soon as the plane took off, “it turned right, [when it] should have turned left.”

<p>Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty</p> Officials at the scene following the crash at Tribhuvan International Airport — Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty
Officials at the scene following the crash at Tribhuvan International Airport

Ram Kumar Khatri Chetri, who owns an automotive parts store located next to the crash site, told the AP that after the plane went down, "there was huge smoke and fire coming out" of the wreckage.

“It was just horrible and there was no way that anyone could just go near the plane and help out when there was so much fire and even explosions,” he continued.

The crash took place over a year after the deadly Yeti Airlines flight 691, which killed all 72 people on board.

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