Nepal Plane Crash: Wreckage Of Tara Air’s Twin Otter Plane Found, Police Say No Survivors

UPDATE: 3:30 a.m. EST — Rescue workers have found the wreckage of a small plane that went missing Wednesday during an 18-minute flight shortly after takeoff in Nepal, authorities reportedly said. Local police said that there are no survivors, according to the Nepal Times.

The Twin Otter aircraft, operated by Tara Air, was carrying 20 passengers and three crew members. It was earlier reported by several media that there were 21 people on board the plane, which was traveling from Pokhara, a resort town about 125 miles west of the capital Kathmandu, to Jomsom.

According to Sanjiv Gautam, director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, the plane's wreckage was found near the village of Dana in Myagdi district, BBC reported.

Original story:

A small plane carrying 21 people went missing Wednesday while flying in a mountainous area in Nepal, authorities reportedly said. Tara Air Viking 9N-AHH Twin Otter was on an 18-minute flight when it lost contact with the control tower, the Associated Press reported.

The plane was reportedly traveling from Pokhara, 125 miles west of Kathmandu, to Jomsom, which is the starting point for trekkers going into mountainous areas. The plane was carrying 18 passengers, including two foreign nationals, and three crew members.

"Two helicopters are on a search-and-rescue mission," Pokhara airport official Yogendra Kunwar said, according to Reuters. "There is no trace of the aircraft so far."

Search has been underway for more than two hours but poor weather conditions are hampering the operations, Kunwar reportedly said. He added that there were no landing strips between the two airports where the plane was flying.

According to Kathmandu Post, a local newspaper, the two foreigners on board the plane are from China and Kuwait.