Two Hong Kong residents were among the victims of a plane crash in Nepal. The passenger plane had gone missing in Nepal on Wednesday with 23 people on board, and the wreckage was found later that day, according to the aviation minister.
According to Apple Daily, a Hong Kong woman and a Nepalese man living in Hong Kong were killed in the crash. They were colleagues traveling together through the country.
“The wreckage of the plane was found in a completely burnt state in Solighopte in Myagdi district,” Aananda Prasad Pokharel told AFP, adding that bodies could be seen scattered around the wreckage.
The airline revised its earlier number of 21 on board the Twin Otter plane.
The passenger plane had gone missing in a mountainous area of Nepal early on Wednesday.
Tara Air said rescue helicopters had been deployed to search for the Twin Otter aircraft, which lost contact with air traffic control eight minutes after it left the western town of Pokhara for Jomsom on Wednesday morning.
Jomsom is a popular trekking destination in the Himalayas about 20 minutes’ flight from Pokhara, which lies 225 kilometres west of Kathmandu.
Nepal, which is still reeling from a devastating earthquake last April, has suffered a number of air disasters in recent years, dealing a blow to its tourist industry.
Most have been attributed to inexperienced pilots, poor management and inadequate maintenance.
The country’s aviation sector has come under fire from international authorities and in 2013 the European Union banned all Nepalese airlines from flying there.
Words: AFP, with additional reporting from Coconuts Hong Kong
