50 killed as plane catches fire and crashes

A PLANE carrying 71 passengers and crew crashed and burst into flames in Nepal yesterday, killing at least 50 people on board.

Raj Kumar Chettri, general manager of the airport in Kathmandu, said the US-Bangla Airlines plane clipped a fence before crashing on a soccer pitch.

Army spokesman Gokul Bhandrai said: “We’ve recovered 50 dead bodies so far. The chances of rescuing anyone alive is slim.” Survivor Basanta Bohora said: “Suddenly the plane shook violently and there was a loud bang. I was seated near the window and was able to break out of it. I’m fortunate I survived.”

Passengers were from Nepal, Bangladesh, China and the Maldives. Flight BS211, which was flying from Dhaka in Bangladesh, was a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 turboprop. The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal and USBangla Airlines are investigating.

All five passengers in a helicopter were killed after it crashed into the East River in New York on Sunday. Only the pilot, Richard Vance, survived. He said a passenger’s bag may have accidentally hit the fuel shut-off button.