Twenty-one people on board a Nepal Airlines aircraft today miraculously escaped after their plane skidded off the runway and plunged into a river in the northwestern mountainous region, injuring nine, six of them seriously.
The Twin-Otter plane with 21 people, including eight Japanese and three crew members, skidded off the runway and fell into the Kali-Gandaki river while it was attempting to land at Jomsom Airport, said D K Shrestha, an official at Civil Aviation Authority Nepal.
The plane, which took off from popular tourist destination Pokhara, crashed in the bank of Kali Gandaki river at 8.30 a.M., the airport official said.
The condition of three crew members, two Japanese and a Nepali passenger is said to be serious.
Captain Dipendra Pradhan, Co-pilot Suresh Khatrichhetri and Santa Maya Tamang were the crew members, who were among those having serious injury.
Others who sustained minor injuries received medical treatment at Gandaki Hospital in Pokhara.
The crash is said to have occurred due to the sudden flow of mountain wind in the area, officials said.
Jomsom is the main attraction for tourists going for mountain trekking in Nepal. The area is popular with foreign trekkers visiting the Mount Annapurna area and Hindu pilgrims visiting the revered Muktinath temple.
Fifteen people were killed last May when a plane crashed while attempting to land at the same airport.
