Nepal launches air crash enquiry
LUKLA – Only the pilot of the Yeti Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter survived yesterday’s crash in which 18 people were killed.
The plane, en route from Kathmandu, clipped a security fence while landing in poor weather at Lukla’s Tenzing-Hillary airport.
Among the dead were 12 German and two Australian tourists plus two tour guides.
The German trekkers, who included six women, were headed for Gokyo in Solukhumbu district, home to Mt Everest and other high Himalayan ranges, where they were to have gone on an 11-night trekking expedition.
The Maoist government of Nepal has named a five-member inquiry committee under attorney-general Pushpa Raj Koirala to investigate the crash and table its report within two months.
The latest crash revived images of another air disaster in eastern Taplejung district two years ago in which 24 people were killed, including renowned environmentalists and WWF officials.
And in March an aircraft belonging to the UN Mission in Nepal crashed in eastern Ramechhap district, killing 10 people.
Lukla’s runway is just 20m wide and is set on a slope, with a steep 700m drop at one end. 

Ian Jarrett
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