Nepal, Kathmandu: The Nepal government has formed a four member commission to investigate on crash-landing of 9N-AJB plane of Air Kasthamandap in western Kalikot district which killed two pilots on Yesterday. The commission has been formed under the coordination of Yagya Prasad Gautam, former secretary Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, said Suresh Acharya, joint secretary at the ministry.
Other members of the commission include Lieutenant Colonel Rabindra Basnet of Nepal Army, Goma Air Engineer R.K Singh and an under-secretary of the ministry. The incident comes just two days after the fatal air crash of Tara Airlines in Myagdi district, killing all 23 people on board including three crew members.
There were altogether 11 people onboard in Air Kasthamandap’ single engine plane including the two crew members. While crew members–Captain Dinesh Neupane and co-pilot Santosh Rana lost their lives during the crash landing, all the passengers were saved. Nepalese authorities said that most of the passengers have sustained minor injury while two are critically injured.
Meanwhile, the government officials said that the concerned authority would examine the condition of all the single engine planes operating in the country. Joint Secretary Acharya said that Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, the regulatory body of aviation sector, has allowed single engine plane only to conduct chartered flights. He said, “They are not licensed to conduct regular flights”.