US-Bangla airlines crashed at Tribhuwan International Airport March 12, 2018

Plane crash tragedy- an incident that shook us all

A plane from US-Bangla airlines, carrying 71 passengers and crew from Bangladesh, crashed at Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu on Monday, March 12, 2018.

The 78-seater Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 aircraft took off from Dhaka. It flew dangerously low before crashing, consequently, erupting in flames. The plane crashed at 2:18 PM local time.

The crash had killed at least 50 people. The remaining injured were immediately taken to the nearby hospitals. According to Nepal Police Spokesperson DIG Manoj Neupane, 22 injured are undergoing treatment. 12 passengers are admitted to Kathmandu Medical College hospital, 4 at Norvic hospital, 3 at Grande hospital, 1 at Om hospital and 1 at Medicity, Bhainsepati. He further added that 31 bodies were pulled out from the site and 9 had been declared dead at different hospitals.

The Nepali students on board who lost their lives in the crash were

• Sanjay Poudel,
• Sanjaya Maharjan,
• Neega Maharjan,
• Anjila Shrestha,
• Purnima Lohani,
• Sweta Thapa,
• Meeli Maharjan,
• Saruna Shrestha,
• Algina Baral,
• Charu Baral,
• Ashna Shakya and
• Princy Dhami.

These students were returning to their homes after completing their final examinations of Ragib-Rabeya Medical College Hospital.

The authorities have released the names of the survivors on the crash.The list of the victims who were undergoing treatment in different hospitals in Nepal after the crash on Monday.

According to the list, the survivors are: 

• Emrana Kabir Hashi,
• Mehedi Hasan,
• Rizana Abdull,
• Sayada Kamrunnahar Swarna,
• Shahreen Ahmed,
• Md Shahin Bepari,
• Md Rezwanul Haque,
• Princy Dhami,
• Samira Byanjankar,
• Kishore Tripathi,
• Hari Prasad Subedi,
• Dayaram Tamrakar,
• Keshav Pandey,
• Ashish Ranjit,
• Binod Raj Paudyal,
• Sanam Shakya,
• Dinesh Humagain,
• and Basanta Bohara.

Nepalese travel agent, Basanta Bohara, one of the survivors, described his experience from the hospital bed. After a normal take-off from Dhaka, the plane had begun to behave strangely as it approached Kathmandu, he said. “All of a sudden the plane shook violently and there was a loud bang afterward.”, he was quoted as saying by the Kathmandu post. He had a window seat and was able to break out of the window.

The plane had 67 passengers and 4 crews. There were 33 Nepalese, 32 Bangladeshi, 1 Chinese, and 1 Maldivian. There were 37 males, 27 females and 2 children on board.

The US-Bangla Airlines chief executive Imran Asif blamed the Kathmandu air traffic control for the crash. Though the reason behind the unusual landing hasn’t been clarified, Sanjiv Gautam, director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal was quoted, “The aircraft was permitted to land from the southern side of the runway flying over Koteshwor, but it landed from the northern side.”, to the Kathmandu Post.

Asif told his reporters at his office in Dhaka that the pilot had received wrong directions from the tower.

Many aviation incidents have previously been reported in Nepal, but this is the deadliest since the crash in September 1992, which had killed all 167 on board.

A rescue team of TIA and Nepal Army personnel rushed to the site following the crash. Nepali Prime Minister K.P. Oli had reached the site immediately and promised that there will be a further investigation into the incident. All flights in and out of TIA were canceled for about three hours following the incident.

At this time when airways are taken as the safest means of transportation, crashes in Nepal continue to haunt the deadlines. The families, friends, and relatives of the passengers stood there waiting for their beloved ones in the airport. Neither the passengers nor the families ever dreamed of this incident. A few minutes earlier, the airport had smiles, joys, and laughter. A few minutes later, the ground shook and tears and heart-breaking cries filled the air. Those parents who longed to see their children in white aprons had to see them covered in white cloth. The flower bouquets and the garlands that freshened the environment went in vain.

A small note that said “I don’t know whether you will like it or not but, WEAR it!!!” was found lying on the ground around the accident site.

This disheartening incident left many stories untold, many messages unveiled, many gifts unwrapped, and many dreams shattered. We pray for the departed souls to rest in peace and pray for the speedy recovery of the injured passengers in the hospital.  

Conversation before landing Plane(Blackbox Video)