KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A domestic plane with 19 people on board slipped off the runway and crashed Wednesday while trying to take off from the airport serving Nepal's capital.
The pilot of the plane survived the crash and has been taken to to the Kathmandu Medical College Hospital for treatment, said a doctor at the hospital who was not authorized to speak to media.
The pilot has injuries to the eyes but not in any danger, the doctor said.
The Saurya Airlines plane was heading from Kathmandu to the resort town of Pokhara.
It was not clear how it slipped.
Local media images showed smoke rising and plane wreckage scattered all over a ditch. A fire has been brought under control.
Tribhuvan International Airport, the main airport in Nepal for international and domestic flights, has been closed as emergency crew worked.
It is monsoon rainy season in Kathmandu but was not raining at the time of the crash. Visibility was low across the capital, however.
Saurya Airlines operates the Bombardier CRJ 200 on domestic routes.
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