Twenty-one people were hurt, including eight Japanese tourists, when a small plane skidded off a Nepal airport runway on Thursday and plunged into a river, police said.
All 21 people aboard the Nepal Airlines Twin Otter aircraft were injured, five seriously, police spokesman Keshav Adhikari said.
The plane’s brakes failed and it crashed into the Kali Gandaki river in the Annapurna mountain range in Nepal’s northwest, Adhikari said.
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“At 8.30am, the plane was landing at Jomsom airport in Mustang district when its brakes failed. Half of the aircraft’s body is in the water and the other half is on the river bank,” Adhikari said.
Rescuers carry the injured pilot on a stretcher. Photo AP
“Five people, including a pilot, have been seriously injured. They are being airlifted to Pokhara for further treatment,” he said, referring to the resort town where the flight originated.
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The plane carried three crew members and 18 passengers.
