Twenty-two dead in Nepal plane crash

Nepali police said on Thursday that all 22 passengers and crew aboard a small passenger plane perished after it crashed into a mountainous area of eastern Nepal. The police reached the site after reports that the airplane crashed on Wednesday.

Reuters/ Navesh Chitrakar

"The aircraft has broken up completely and is scattered over 200 metres of dense forest," said police spokesperson Bigyan Raj Sharma. He added that police had recovered 20 bodies and are searching for the final two. The bodies will be flown via helicopter later on Thursday to Kathmandu.

Police do not know why the Tara Air airplane crashed. One passenger was American, while the others were reporterdly either Nepalese or Bhutanese.

The plane took off from Khotang, which is not a major tourist destination, but has a Hindu temple and a Buddhist monastery.

Tara Air is a subsidiary of Yeti Airlines, a domestic airline that serves greater Nepal.