A passenger plane going from Pokhara to Jomsom in Nepal has become an accident victim. Twenty-two people, including crew members, were on board this plane, including four Indians. The airport authority said no contact with the aircraft since 10.07 am.
The wreckage of the plane was found around 4 pm. The Chief of Tribhuvan International Airport said that investigation is going on at the spot. At the same time, army spokesman Narayan Silwal said that the Nepalese army had left for the spot by land and air.
On behalf of the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) in Bangalore, India, the Airport Authority of Nepal has shared information about the exact location of the missing aircraft. ELT has said that the Tara Air plane is around Khaibang in the Mustang district.
ELT is a device installed in the aircraft through which the location of the missing or crashed aircraft is traced. Earlier, the traffic controller of Jomsom Airport had said that there had been reports of a loud explosion in Ghasa, but this could not be confirmed. A helicopter was sent to search the blast area. It was also told that the last contact with the aircraft was done at the site of the blast.
The four Indians on board the missing plane are residents of Mumbai. Officials said that the four people belong to the same family, identified as Ashok Kumar Tripathi, Dhanush Tripathi, Ritika Tripathi, and Vaibhavi Tripathi.
On the other hand, after the plane’s disappearance, there were a lot of problems in its search due to bad weather. After the plane’s wreckage is found, further action is taken. There were 13 Nepalis, four Indians, two Germans, and three crew members on board this passenger plane.
On the other hand, according to Nepal Army Spokesperson on Tara Air, it is not known yet… We are trying to reach the place where local people have claimed that they have seen something burning. Once our troops reach the spot, only then can we officially and independently announce the findings. The weather is very unfavorable in terms of the area.
According to the information, amidst bad weather, a Nepalese army helicopter traced the crash site of the missing plane. According to My Republica newspaper, a Nepal Army helicopter carrying 10 soldiers and two employees landed on the banks of a river near Narshang Monastery, which was the likely site of the accident.
Prem Nath Thakur, General Manager of Tribhuvan International Airport, was quoted by the newspaper as saying that Nepal Telecom tracked the cell phone of the plane’s captain Prabhakar Ghimire through the Global Positioning System (GPS) network, which led to the locating of the missing plane.
Thakur said that the cell phone of Captain Ghimire of the missing aircraft was ringing. After tracking the phone, the Nepal Army helicopter reached the accident site. Tara Air is the newest and largest airline serving the Nepalese mountains, according to the airline website. It started its business in 2009 with a mission to help develop rural Nepal.