Saurya Airlines that killed 18, 105th aviation disaster in Nepal’s history

Saurya Airlines crash in Nepal kills 18, sparking outrage over air safety and calls for regulatory reform.

When Manu Raj Sharma, a technician with Saurya Airlines, boarded his company’s aircraft with his wife Priza Khatiwada and four-year-old son Adhiraj on Wednesday morning, the Kathmandu sky was clear after an overnight rain, perfect for a regular flight.

There were 15 others onboard the plane, including three crew members.

Around 11 a.m., the 50-seater Bombardier CRJ-200 jet was cleared for takeoff from the Tribhuvan International Airport from the southern end of the runway (Runway 02). It was bound for the tourist town of Pokhara, a 25-minute flight west of Kathmandu.

But shortly after the takeoff, at 11:11 a.m., the aircraft veered off the runway, banking to the right, and plunged into a gorge on the east of the airstrip. In no moment, it was a ball of fire. A huge plume of smoke billowed out.

Rescue operations were initiated immediately and the fire was brought under control. But 18 people, including the Sharma family, had already died.

“One injured person (Captain Manish Ratna Shakya) was rescued and 18 people were found dead,” said the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) in a statement.

All aboard the plane were Nepalese except one, who has been identified by CAAN as a Yemeni national.