There are 18 confirmed victims of a plane crash occurred at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmanduin Nepal, Wednesday 24 July 2024 at 11:13 local time (about 7:30 Italian time): an airplane Canadair CRJ-200ER from the Saurya Airlines directed to Pokharaalso in Nepal, crashed during take-off, crashing onto the edge of the airport runway and catching fire. Rescue arrived immediately, but of the 19 people on board the aircraft, only the captain survived, who was injured in the eyes and is currently in hospital. The plane was heading to Pokhara to carry out the maintenance: all the people on board were in fact employees of the airline. According to the Aviation Safety Network, this is the worst plane crash of 2024 and the 3rd most serious for that type of aircraft.
The cause of the crash is not known, but images and video footage at the time of the crash show the Canadair to turn suddenly to the right immediately after leaving the runway, with the immediate outbreak of a fire and a high column of black smoke.
The accident brings the spotlight back on aviation safety in nepalone of the countries with the highest probability of plane crashes in the world. It is in Nepal that what is often considered the most dangerous airport in the world is located: that of Luklain the north of the country, with a very short runway (just 527 metres) and a 12° incline that ends directly on a cliff.
The reasons why air safety in Nepal is a problem are mainly related to the complex orography of the Himalayan territorywhere 8 of the 14 highest peaks in the world are located, including Everest. Flying between mountains is not easy in itself, but it becomes even more so if we add to this the presence of the phenomenon of wind shear (gusts of wind that suddenly change direction) and the fact that the weather conditions in those areas can also vary very rapidly. Furthermore, the orographic conditions of Nepal often make it necessary to use small aircraft, which by their nature are more prone to accidents. This data is confirmed by a report by the civil aviation authority of Nepal, which analyzed air accidents in the country between 2009 and 2018, finding that the aircraft most prone to accidents are precisely those with a maximum of 19 seats, such as the Canadair CRJ-200 of the Kathmandu incident.
For these reasons, in 2015 the International Civil Aviation Organization of the United Nations entered into a partnership with the Himalayan country to resolve aviation safety issues in Nepal.
