A Tara Air’s 9 NAET twin-engine aircraft flying 22 persons – including four Indians and three Japanese nationals – from Pokhara to Jomsom in Nepal lost contact with airport authorities at 9.55 am today, news agencies reported. “The aircraft was seen over the sky of Jomsom in Mustang and then had diverted to Mt. Dhaulagiri after which it hadn’t come into contact,” Chief District Officer Netra Prasad Sharma confirmed ANI over the phone.
Nepal plane missing: Here is what we know so far
The Twin Otter 9N-AET plane belonging to Tara Air, which took off at 10:15 am from Pokhara, lost contact with the tower 15 minutes after it flew, according to a spokesperson at the Tara Air.
How many passengers are there in the plane?
There are four Indian nationals, two Germans and 13 Nepali passengers besides a three member Nepali crew, said Sudarshan Bartaula, spokesperson at the airlines.
Tara Air’s 9 NAET twin-engine crew
The three member crew of the aircraft was led by captain Prabhakar Prasad Ghimire.
The aircraft was scheduled to land at Jomsom Airport in the Western mountainous region at 10:15 am. The aircraft lost contact with the tower from the sky above Ghorepani on the Pokhara-Jomsom air route, aviation sources said.
Has the missing Nepal plane crashed?
According to an air traffic controller at Jomsom Airport, they have an unconfirmed report about a loud noise in Ghasa of Jomsom. It is suspected that the aircraft crashed in the Dhaulagiri area, My Republica newspaper quoted DSP Ram Kumar Dani of Mustang as saying.
