Thread: Nepal: Plane goes missing with 22 people on board, officials say

Doubt there will be survivors, not many/any areas to land. RIP

Perhaps another "Superjet"-style crash.

Nope, engine failure, mountain rendevous.

Flying in Nepal is dangerous enough in good weather. It’s just insane in bad weather!

Originally Posted by misskit

Flying in Nepal is dangerous enough in good weather. It’s just insane in bad weather!

yep, i had more than a few sketchy moments getting flown around the hills

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

It had been on a 15-minute scheduled flight from the tourist town of Pokhara to the mountain town of Jomsom

I got the bus from Jomsom to Pokhara.

It took 9 hours.

RIP/thanks be to the poor souls/sods on board.

KATHMANDU: Nepal's army said on Monday it had located the crash site of a plane that went missing with 22 people on board during cloudy weather on Sunday.
"Search and rescue troops have physically located the plane crash site," army spokesperson Narayan Silwal said on Twitter, posting a picture of the wreckage with the plane's tail number clearly visible and parts of the aircraft shown scattered on the edge of a mountain.
Four Indians, two Germans and 16 Nepalis were on board the plane, a De Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter operated by privately owned Tara Air, according to the airline and government officials.
The aircraft was on a 20-minute flight before losing contact with the control tower.

It had taken off from the tourist town of Pokhara, 125 kilometres west of the capital, Kathmandu, and was bound for Jomsom, about 80 km northwest of Pokhara, a popular tourist and pilgrimage site.
Flight-tracking website Flightradar24 said the aircraft, with registration number 9N-AET, made its first flight in April 1979.
Deo Chandra Lal Karna, a spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), said five helicopters were ready to help with the rescue process.
Nepal, home to eight of the world's 14 highest mountains, including Everest, has a record of air accidents. Its weather can change suddenly and airstrips are typically located in mountainous areas that are hard to reach.
In early 2018, a US-Bangla Airlines flight from Dhaka to Kathmandu crashed on landing and caught fire, killing 51 of the 71 people on board.

Nepal says missing plane with 22 on board crashed

^ Helluva photo. RIP to all souls.

Can any pilots out there explain any counter measures to air pockets in powered flight? I am not suggesting this caused this one but it is always a an issue in Himalayas where I guess the huge Mts and adiobatic pressure changes? changes are too severe even too tip top pilots in well maintained craft.
I am neither a pilot nor meteorlogist so curious.

I'd imagine the VOTOL thruster in military craft with huge thrust would have some chance but not these flimsy air taxis?
Missing poster Can123 knows the process where he and my cousin where where the parts for turning the engines for the FAA if he's lurking perhaps let us know?

If you ever stood and heard a VOTOL take off even Thailand seems quite calm and quiet after

Always seemed magical , Harrier than a Barracuda if you will



Suppose only comfort it must have been pretty fast.

Would it be too much to ask that you keep pathetic shite in the Lounge?

Fourteen bodies have been recovered from the crash site of a plane that went down in a remote region of Nepal.
The wreckage of the plane carrying 22 people was found on Monday scattered on a mountainside after disappearing during a short flight.


"The search for others is continuing," said Tek Raj Sitaula, a spokesman for the Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal's capital Kathmandu.
The Tara Air turboprop Twin Otter was on a 20-minute flight when it lost contact with the airport tower while flying in an area of deep river gorges and mountaintops just before its scheduled landing.

Nepal plane crash: Fourteen bodies found after aircraft goes down in minutes | World News | Sky News

20 bodies now recovered; one more found and they are attempting to retrieve it. One person still missing.

Rescuers in Nepal have so far recovered 20 bodies from the crash site of a small plane carrying 22 people, an official has told the BBC.

The wreckage of the plane, operated by Nepali carrier Tara Air, was recovered in Mustang district in northern Nepal.

The passenger plane was on a 20-minute flight when it lost contact with air traffic control five minutes before it was due to land.

The search is ongoing for the remaining passengers, the official said.

"We have found 20 dead bodies, the body of an additional person has been located and rescuers are trying to retrieve it from difficult mountain terrain," the country's Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Deo Chandra Lal Karn told the BBC on Monday.

"Rescuers are still searching for a missing individual at the crash site," he said.

Four Indians, two Germans and 16 Nepalis were on board the plane, according to reports. But search operations have been hampered by bad weather and mountainous terrain.
Nepal: Rescuers recover 14 bodies from plane wreck - BBC News

No miracles. RIP adventurous souls.

Originally Posted by thailazer

Helluva photo

I don't think I want to see it in any higher resolution

RIP

Originally Posted by david44

Can any pilots out there explain any counter measures to air pockets in powered flight? I am not suggesting this caused this one but it is always a an issue in Himalayas where I guess the huge Mts and adiobatic pressure changes? changes are too severe even too tip top pilots in well maintained craft.
I am neither a pilot nor meteorlogist so curious.

These "air pockets" can be down draughts caused by the mountainous terrain, microbursts, or wind shear and should generally be avoided where possible. They are most perilous during landing when the aircraft is low and slow but can be a hazard in all phases of flight.

The accident that immediately comes to mind is Delta 191, a Tristar that crashed trying to land at Dallas Fort Worth due a microburst. I thought it was this accident that led to the development and installation of microburst detection Radar being installed at airports. However, this was introduced following the earlier Eastern 66 accident. The microburst for each of these accidents was also modelled and added to all Level-D Full Flight Simulators used for training.

Many modern aircraft now have windshear warning detection and the flight directors have an optional "Angel Wings" display to give the pilot the optimum flight path angle for maximum lift.

Windshears can be far too powerful for commercial aircraft to cope with and the best approach is to avoid them whenever possible.

Sorry for the thread drift

Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 - Wikipedia

Delta Air Lines Flight 191 - Wikipedia

^ thanks. It’s interesting to know.

I flew into Pokhara once. That was scary enough.

RIP the folk.

RIP the people on board flight TEA-N6.

Originally Posted by Troy

Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 - Wikipedia

Delta Air Lines Flight 191 - Wikipedia

Thanks for an informative response.

Could modern military planes overcome this though, assuming pilot has sufficient training, awareness, or would they just avoid such conditions outside of combat? I'd assume F35 etc have such huge thrust that it less important than commercial planes?

Originally Posted by Troy

These "air pockets" can be down draughts caused by the mountainous terrain, microbursts, or wind shear and should generally be avoided where possible. They are most perilous during landing when the aircraft is low and slow but can be a hazard in all phases of flight.

I would suggest it's more likely:

2012 Mount Salak Sukhoi Superjet crash - Wikipedia

Thai Airways International Flight 311 - Wikipedia

^ I was responding to request and not reason for this accident, which was similar to the one in 2016...flying into imc as suggested earlier.

^^ military jets can withstand greater g forces and have much higher thrust ratio so windshear isn't as big a problem. Still best to avoid thunderstorms and other areas they occur.