[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text dp_text_size=”size-4″]KATHMANDU: According to authorities, searchers on Monday discovered the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder from a passenger plane that had crashed on Sunday, killing at least 68 people in Nepal’s biggest aviation disaster in 30 years.
Investigators may be able to learn more from the data on the recorders how the ATR 72 aircraft, which was carrying 72 people, crashed in clear weather just before landing in the tourist city of Pokhara. Both recorders were in good shape and would be sent for analysis based on the recommendation of the manufacturer, Teknath Sitaula, an official at the Kathmandu airport, told Reuters on Monday.
Rescuers were battling cloudy weather and poor visibility as they scoured the river gorge for passengers who are unaccounted for, more than 24 hours after the crash. Sixty-eight bodies have been recovered. Reuters footage from the crash site showed rescuers looking at the charred remains of the plane near a gorge in the mountains.
The plane, on a scheduled flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara, gateway to the scenic Annapurna mountain range, was carrying 57 Nepalis, five Indians, four Russians, two South Koreans, and one person each from Argentina, Ireland, Australia and France.
Ajay K.C., a Pokhara police official, reported that the search and rescue effort, which was suspended on Sunday due to darkness, had been restarted. He told Reuters, “We will remove the five bodies from the gorge and look for the four people who are still missing.” Now when it’s foggy, the search is problematic.
He claimed that a hospital had received the other 63 bodies. Rescue operations are being hampered by the weather, according to a Pokhara airport official, but clouds are supposed to lift later in the day.
Nearly 350 people have died since 2000 in plane or helicopter crashes in Nepal – home to eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains, including Everest – where sudden weather changes can make for hazardous conditions.
Experts say air accidents are usually caused by a combination of factors, and investigations can take months or longer. India’s aviation regulator said it would take all measures to ensure safe aviation in the country’s airspace.
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