US-Bangla passenger plane with 71 on board crash-lands at Kathmandu airport

A Tourism Ministry official said around 17 passengers of the 71 onboard were injured, who were taken to a hospital. More details are awaited.

As per the local media reports, smoke was seen rising from the aircraft. The flight swerved off the runway during landing and crashed into a soccer field about 2:20 p.m., The Kathmandu Post reported, citing an airport spokesman.

All flights in and out of Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), Kathmandu, have been cancelled. All schedueld flights from the airport have been halted while incoming flights have been diverted to other destinations, TIA sources said.

The plane, a twin-engine turboprop, can carry as many as 78 passengers. US-Bangla Airlines began operations in 2014, and its route between Dhaka and Kathmandu was its first international one, said the Center for Aviation. The airline is a subsidiary of the US-Bangla Group, a joint American-Bangladeshi company.