Manang Air Helicopter Crashes while Returning from Lukla to Kathmandu, Nepal
The aircraft, registered as 9N-AMV, was out of contact with the control tower on Tuesday, shortly after 10 a.m.
Manag Air Helicopter with six, five Mexicans from same family members and one pilot crashed at Lamjura of the Likhupike Rural Municipality in Solukhumbu on 11th July 2023.
The aircraft, registered as 9N-AMV, was out of contact with the control tower on Tuesday, shortly after 10 a.m. The Manang Air aircraft was carrying six passengers, including the pilot, at the time of its disappearance.
Senior Captain Chet Gurung was piloting the aircraft at the time of the incident. 9N-AMV took off from Kathmandu at approximately 10:05 am and, within 8 minutes of departure, lost contact with the control tower.
Authorities started working urgently to re-establish the communication and locate the Manag Air aircraft immediately.
Manang Air Aircraft Crashes Near Mount Everest
After losing contact with the control tower at around 10:13 a.m., it crashed near Mt. Everest, in a region known as Lamjura Pass in Solukhumbu. The initial local media report stated that five of the bodies had been recovered from the crash site on Tuesday.
According to the Tribhuvan International Airport spokesperson, Teknath Situala, the Manag Air Helicopter lost contact with the control tower after it reached Lamjura Pass.
Due to bad weather conditions, the Manag Air aircraft had to make an emergency landing in Surke after leaving for Kathmandu. The helicopter was in contact with the Tenzing Hillary Airport’s control tower till it reached Lamjura Danda, and as soon as the communication was handed over to the TIA control tower, the helicopter was out of contact, according to the ATC Officer Sagar Kadel, Tenzing Hillary Airport.
Crashed Down at Chihandanda in Lamjura
The Manag Air helicopter that lost contact above 12,00 meters altitude crashed at Chihandada in Lamjura on Tuesday, 11th July. Locals who found the wreckage of the Manang Air aircraft reported the incident to the local authorities.
District Superintendent of Police Deepak Shrestha, speaking about the incident, said that bad weather might have been the cause for the aircraft’s crashing. But, the brief cause of the devastating incident can only be determined after the investigation.
The aircraft carried Senior Captain Chet Bahadur Gurung, including the five Mexican nationals Gonzalez Olacio Luz, Sifuentes G Fernando, Sifuentes Gonzalez Maria Jose, Sifuentes Rincon Ismael, and Gonzalez Abril.
The body of all six have been found near the wreckage location; the Mananag Air helicopter apparently crashed after hitting a tree on the hill. As per Deputy Inspector General Rajesh Nath Bastola, all six people aboard the Manang Air flight were killed in the crash.
D.I.G Bastola further added that one of the bodies has been found in pieces, and there are reports that other bodies are burnt. He also stated that the Police and Nepal Army teams that have reached the crash sites are preparing to send the bodies deceased back to Kathmandu.
Two Altitude Air helicopters have been deployed to bring the bodies of the deceased to the capital.
