By Ere-ebi Agedah
A plane with 22 people on board has gone missing in Nepal’s mountains, an official said on Sunday.
The 9N-AET aircraft was on a 15-minute scheduled flight to the mountain town of Jomsom before it lost contact with the airport tower not long after take-off.
An air traffic controller at Jomsom Airport said they were investigating an unconfirmed report of a loud noise in Ghasa of Jomsom.
“Locals from Titi have called and informed us that they have heard an unusual sound as if there was some bang. We are deploying a helicopter to the area for the search operation,” Ram Kumar Dani, DSP of district police office, said.
The plane was carrying 13 Nepalis, four Indians, two Germans and three crew members.
There was no information on the Twin Otter aircraft but a search was now under way, according to police official Ramesh Thapa.
A helicopter has been dispatched to the areas where last contact was made.
Planes on the route normally fly between Nepalese mountains before landing in a valley in the Himalayas.
It has been raining in the area for the past few days but flights have been operating normally.
The route is popular with foreign hikers who trek on the mountain trails and also with Indian and Nepalese pilgrims who visit the Muktinath temple, sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists.
The impoverished Himalayan nation has a poor air safety record due to insufficient training and maintenance. The European Union has banned all Nepali airlines from its airspace over safety concerns.
