Nepal plane crash: Seven British trekkers among 19 killed on flight to Mount Everest

On vacation: The 15 trekkers and four crew members took off from Kathmandu International Airport (above), a popular start point for journeys into the Everest region

A fault with the plane? The passengers were on board a Sita Air-operated twin-engine Dornier aircraft like this one when it crashed

• Twin-engine aircraft came down in a field just minutes after taking off from Kathmandu airport
• Witnesses say the plane burst into flames before landing near a river on southwest edge of the capital
• Five Chinese and three Nepalese passengers were also killed along with three native crew members
  
• Pilot reported trouble shortly after leaving airport and appeared to have been trying to turn back
• Foreign Office said it is looking 'urgently' into reports that seven Britons were killed in the disaster
• Plane was heading Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest which attracts thousands of tourists every year

Witnesses have described how they heard the desperate 'wailing and screaming' of terrified passengers after a plane crashed in a fireball in the Nepalese capital killing seven Britons.
The twin-engine aircraft, operated by domestic carrier Sita Air, was carrying trekkers to the Everest region and came down minutes after take-off near the Manohara River on the southwest edge of Katmandu, killing 19 people in total.
This morning, as a number of badly burned bodies lay just metres from the aircraft's shattered fuselage, bystanders described hearing desperate screams and flames coming from one of the plane's wings moments before it hit the ground at around 6.30am (00.45 GMT).
Housewife Tulasa Pokharel, 26, whose house is located just meters from the crash site, said she saw the plane with black smoke crash into an open space on the banks of Manohara river, according to myrepublica.com.
She said: 'That time I could hear some people inside the plane wailing and screaming. When we went to inform the police and other locals about the incident and came back, there was just silence. We saw the plane burning and all of them dead.'

No survivors: Onlookers watch on helplessly around the blazing plane which crashed on the edge of the Nepalese capital, killing 19 people including seven Britons

Desperate fight for life: The pilot reported trouble shortly after leaving Kathmandu airport and appeared to have been trying to turn back when it came down

Fireball: Firefighters battle to douse the burning wreckage of a plane after it came down in a field just minutes after takning off from Kathmandu Airport
 

She told reporters: 'We could hear people inside the aircraft screaming, but we couldn't throw water at the plane to put out the fire because we were scared that the engines were about to explode.
She said the pilot tried his best to make an emergency landing and that if he had managed it some of the passengers could have been saved.
The Dornier Aircraft 9N-AHA was just a kilometre away from the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu. Airport authorities said that the pilot told them seconds before the crash how it had hit a bird.
The crew had apparently became aware of intense heat in the cabin.
A spokesman for Sita Airways told the Daily Telegraph: 'There was very much heat and then the fire began. They were very close to the airport. After two or three minutes it crashed.'
The plane appeared to have been trying to turn back, according to airport official Ratish Chandra Suman. The wrecked plane was found pointing towards the airport area.
Investigators were trying to determine the cause of the crash and identify the bodies and Mr Suman said he could not confirm if the plane was already on fire before it crashed.

Doomed: Mobile phone video shot by locals showed the front section of the plane was on fire when it first hit the ground

Destroyed: The fire quickly spread to the rear, but the tail was still in one piece at the scene near the Manohara River on the south-west edge of Kathmandu

Incinerated: Villagers were unable to approach the plane because of the flames and it took some time for firefighters to bring the fire under control

The weather in Kathmandu and surrounding areas was clear on Friday morning and it was one of the first flights to take off from Kathmandu's Tribhuwan International Airport. Other flights reported no problems, and the airport operated normally.
Mobile phone video shot by local people showed the front section of the plane was on fire when it first hit the ground and it appeared the pilot had attempted to land the plane on open ground beside the river.
The fire quickly spread to the rear, but the tail was still in one piece at the scene. Villagers were unable to approach the plane because of the flames and it took some time for firefighters to reach the area and bring the fire under control.
The plane is believed to have been carrying two groups of trekkers. Members of the British group were travelling to the Khumba Pass - also known as the Everest region - and had arrived on Wednesday. They were due to begin a 16 day trek today with guides from the firm Sherpa Adventures, including a visit to the Everest Base Camp.
The youngest of the British group is thought to be 27 and the eldest 60. Two of the victims are thought to be brothers, the Daily Telegraph said.
The other passengers included five Chinese and three Nepalese trekkers, while the three crew members were from Nepal, said Katmandu airport chief Narayan Bastakoti.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said it is looking 'urgently' into reports that seven Britons were killed in the disaster. Names of the dead have not been formally released yet.

Decimated: Rescuers inspect the wreckage of a plane which crashed on the edge of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu minutes after take-off, killing seven British trekkers

Burnt-out: Onlookers and rescuers surround the remnants of the twin-engine plane, which police say caught fire mid-air, preventing the pilots from landing it safely

 

Picking through the pieces: A recovery team clears away one of the propellers as investigators try to establish what caused the crash which killed all 19 people on board

Macabre clear-up: The victims are carried away from the scene by police rescuers who had tried to pull the bodies from the wreckage as firefighters battled the flames

Hundreds of rescuers, police and onlookers today surrounded the burnt-out shell of the aircraft as they looked for bodies and documents to help identify the victims.
The bodies were taken by vans to the hospital mortuary.
A police spokesman said: 'The pilots seem to have tried to land it safely on the banks of the river, but unfortunately the plane caught fire.'
Firefighters brought the fire in the wreckage under control and police rescuers were trying to pull out the bodies, Bastakoti said.

Major operation: Hundreds of rescuers and members of the public swarm around the site as investigators begin to piece together the events that led up to the tragedy

Disaster: The plane, operated by domestic carrier Sita Air, came down just 500 yards from where it took off and appeared to be trying to return there when it came down

Trekking tragedy: The aircraft, operated by domestic carrier Sita Air, came down minutes after take-off near the Manohara River on the southwest edge of Katmandu

Mystery: It is not yet known what caused the crash, but the weather were good so investigators will focus on a possible fault with the aircraft

Evidence: A rescue team member holds up bundles of money recovered from the plane. Soldiers and police also sifted through the wreckage to try to identify the victims

Distressing: A woman is comforted as she cries at the crash site. It is not known if she is a relative of anyone on board

The plane was heading for Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest. Thousands of Westerners head to the region around the world's highest peak every year for trekking trips.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has raised concerns about air safety in Nepal.
It was the sixth fatal air crash in the country in the last two years, with 76 lives lost in that period before Friday, raising fresh questions about the safety record of the country's numerous small airlines.
English mountaineer Alan Hinkes, who has been climbing in the Himalayas for more than 20 years, told the BBC that he had taken the flight from Kathmandu to Lukla many times previously, and that problems usually occurred at the Lukla end.
He said: 'It is ironic that it has crashed in Kathmandu. You are usually worried about it happening at the other end.
'The landing strip in Lukla is a bit like an aircraft carrier with a mountain at the end of it, with a 1,000ft drop at the end of the runway. Normally crashes happen at that end.'

 

Popular tourist destination: The trekkers were heading for Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest on the Nepalese border

 

Killed on trekking adventure: Thirteen people on board included seven Brits and five Chinese, while three other passengers and the three crew members were from Nepal

Popular route: The plane was heading for Lukla, the gateway to the Mount Everest region which attracts tens of thousands of trekkers every year

Shocking: A Nepalese police officer looks visibly distressed as he stands in front of the wreckage of the aircraft

Mr Hinkes said it was unlikely the victims would have been planning to climb Eversafest place to fly, I must admit, but it is what you have to do to get into the mountains.'est, but were more likely to be trekkers or people attempting other mountains in the Everest region.
He said: 'There is quite good weather in October and November for climbing the mountains around Everest.
'It is a bit worrying and upsetting. There are a lot of people and friends I know who go out at this time of year leading treks.
'It is quite alarming. I have lost a few friends in plane crashes in Nepal over the last 20 years.
'It is not the

No hope: Nepalese police said the pilots appeared to try to land the plane safely on the banks of a river, but the plane caught fire

History repeating: The disaster comes just months after 15 people were killed when their plane crashed into a hill in northwest Nepal in May

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: 'We understand that British nationals may be involved, and we are urgently seeking to confirm what has happened.
'Our embassy in Kathmandu is talking to the airline and local authorities to find out whether Britons were involved.'
Autumn is considered the best time to trek the foothills of the Himalayan peaks.
The crash follows an avalanche on another Nepal peak Sunday that killed seven foreign climbers and a Nepali guide.
And in May, 15 people were killed when their plane crashed into a hill in northwest Nepal.