Nepal plane crash latest disaster to hit Himalayan nation; a look at recent tragedies

Nepal, the Himalayan nation, has been at the heart of several tragedies in the last few years. On Sunday, a Yeti Airlines flight carrying 68 passengers and four crew members crashed in Pokhara. Sunday's crash is only an addition to Nepal's many troubles of late. The mountaineous nation is prone to natural disasters primarily because of frequent changes in weather. The country’s diverse geo-climatic system makes it more vulnerable to natural disasters.

This recent flight crash in Nepal comes just months after the country suffered an earthquake of 6.6 magnitude in November 2022.  

Himalayan nation's many tragedies, a list:

2023 Yeti airlines plane crash in Nepal's Pokhara: 

A Nepal flight carrying 68 passengers and four crew members from Kathmandu crashed in Pokhara on Sunday, January 15. The aircraft ANC ATR 72 which belonged to Yeti Airlines crashed between the old airport and the Pokhara International Airport. According to the airport authority, the Yeti Airlines flight that crashed in Pokhara, Nepal, was carrying 53 Nepal nationals, five Indians, four Russians, two Koreans, one Irish, one Argentinian, and one French national onboard. 

The fatal aircraft crash is believed to be Nepal's deadliest since 1992, where all 167 people aboard a Pakistan International Airlines plane died when it crashed on approach to Kathmandu.

Earthquake jolts Nepal

In just a span of a week, Nepal in November 2022 felt earthquake tremors four times. Soon after, an earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck Nepal claiming the lives of six people on November 9, 2022. 

Just three days later, the Himalayan nation suffered an earthquake of 5.4 magnitude on November 12, 2022. 

The Himalayan country was also hit by an earthquake of magnitude 4.2 on the Richter Scale on November 15 last year. 

Nepal 2022 floods

Many died and more went missing after western Nepal was hit by floods and landslides in October 2022. Hundreds of people were left homeless following the floods that occurred in the neighbouring country. 

2022 Twin Otter aircraft crash

Earlier in May 2022, a Canadian-built turboprop Twin Otter 9N-AET plane carrying 22 passengers onboard crashed minutes after taking off from the tourist city of Pokhara. The plane was carrying four Indians, two Germans and 13 Nepali passengers, besides a three-member Nepali crew when it crashed on May 29, 2022. Notably, the aircraft was run by Nepal's Tara Air, a subsidiary of Yeti Airlines. 

US-Bangla Airlines flight crash in 2018

A US-Bangla Airlines-based plane crashed near the Kathmandu airport, killing at least 51 of the 71 passengers onboard. Following the incident, a committee formed to investigate the accident found that the plane probably crashed because of " pilot disorientation and a lack of situation awareness".