Plane crashes in Nepal capital, killing all 19 on board

The BBC's Sanjoy Majumder says the pilot did make an attempt to land before the plane burst into flames

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A plane heading for the Everest region has crashed in Nepal's capital, killing all 19 people on board including seven Britons, local officials say.

The plane, operated by Sita Air, came down minutes after take-off from Kathmandu. Officials said it crashed into a river bank and caught fire.

Sixteen passengers and three crew were on board the twin-engine prop plane.

The UK Foreign Office says Britons are among the dead but has not confirmed how many.

Police and aviation officials, however, said that seven Britons, five Chinese nationals and seven Nepali nationals were on the plane, including the three Nepalese crew.

The British Embassy in Kathmandu said the UK ambassador had gone to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, where the bodies of those who died had been taken.

"We can confirm that there were British national fatalities. The embassy remains in contact with Nepalese authorities," it said.

'Caught fire'

The cause of the crash is not yet known, however the general manager of Tribhuvan International Airport, Ratish Chandra Lal Suman, said in a statement that the plane had struck a bird.

He said air traffic control contacted the pilot after noticing an unusual manoeuvre minutes after take-off. The pilot said his plane had hit a vulture, the statement said.

The plane had been heading for Lukla, the hub for trekking in the Everest region.

Police spokesman Binod Singh told the AFP news agency that "the pilots seem to have tried to land it safely on the banks of the river but unfortunately the plane caught fire".

Images showed burning wreckage at the crash site and dozens of rescue and security personnel.

Aviation accidents involving small aircraft are not uncommon in mountainous Nepal.

In May, 15 people were killed when a plane crashed trying to land at an airport in the north of the country.

And in September 2011, 19 people were killed when a Buddha Air plane crashed during a flight to view Mount Everest. 

VOCABULARY:

attempt= intent
river banck= bora del riu
twin-engine prop=bimotor d'hèlice
among= entre
remains= restes
struck= colpejar / xoncar
statement = decleració / comunicat

manoeuvre= maniobra
the hub for trekking= el centre del senderisme

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-19754351