BREAKING: 6 Killed in Helicopter Crash on Nepal Hillside
Six people including a Japanese tourist have been killed Saturday after a helicopter crashed into a forested hillside in Nuwakot district in central Nepal. Just one woman survived with wounds and she has been airlifted to capital city Kathmandu.
Nuwakot police chief Basanta Bahadur Kunwar said pilot too was killed and just one survived. Bodies are being retrieved.
Initial report said the single-pilot helicopter went down in Dhadhing and rescuers travelled on foot to reach the wreckage.
The Altitude Air helicopter took off from central district of Gorkha and was to reach Kathmandu. It lost contact with the air traffic control shortly after the take off.
Road access is either limited or non-existent in several remote parts of the country and hence private helicopter industry is at a book carrying goods and tourists. However, Nepal has poor air safety record as the staff is not properly trained and maintenance is not up to the mark.
A similar crash in 2016 north of Kathmandu resulted with the death of seven people. In 2015 earthquake disaster multiple accidents happened while the choppers were put to use in rescue efforts. More than a dozen people were killed.
Considering poor safety record the European Union had earlier banned all Nepalese airlines.
