68 travellers have died after a Yeti Airlines plane crashed in Pokhara, a city in central Nepal.
The crash is the worst aviation disaster in three decades for the Asian nation and search operations have been ongoing.
Among the 72 passengers on the plane were several foreigners, including one Aussie, five Indians, four Russians, and two South Koreans, according to the ABC.
“Pained by the tragic air crash in Nepal in which precious lives have been lost, including Indian nationals,” tweeted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday.
“In this hour of grief, my thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families.”
The plane, Flight NYT 691, was heading from Kathmandu to Pokhara for a quick 24-minute trip, Time reported. During its trip, the pilot requested landing on a different runway before crashing on the bank of the Seti River.
Nepal plane crash:total 72 passengers died ' 4 Indians were going to Pokhara for paragliding #NepalPlaneCrash #Nepal pic.twitter.com/UepdeNdXBn
— A H M E D (@AhmedViews_) January 15, 2023
Horrifying last moments of an ATR plane crash from Nepal in Pokhara that was bound for Kathmandu. All 72 people on board are dead. pic.twitter.com/4JZIvnThPQ
— Wajahat Kazmi (@KazmiWajahat) January 15, 2023
Nepalese officials conducted a search and rescue operation at the crash site, which continued into the evening before the teams decided to wait and resume the search on Monday, the Nepalese civil aviation authority reported.
The cause of the crash has still been undetermined and an investigation is underway. Yeti Airlines has cancelled all flights on Monday to mourn the victims of the crash.
ATR, the manufacturer of the plane, released a statement following the crash.
“Our first thoughts are with all the individuals affected by this,” the statement read.
“ATR specialists are fully engaged to support both the investigation and the customer.”
While this is the worst plane crash that Nepal has suffered since 1992, another plane went down in Nepal in June last year.
The flight, which was operated by Nepali carrier Tara Air, had 19 passengers and 3 crew members onboard when it went missing.
Following this crash, Nepal’s aviation authority decided to mandate changes to prevent further tragedies. These rules prevented pilots from deciding to fly in difficult weather.
