Kathmandu, Dec 15 (IANS) A small aircraft with 22 people flown by domestic airline Tara Air went missing in eastern Nepal Wednesday afternoon minutes after taking off, aviation authorities said.
The aircraft was carrying 19 passengers, mostly Nepali pilgrims who had gone to worship at a venerated Shiva temple when it lost contact with the airport authorities in Kathmandu around 3 p.m.
Flown by Nepali pilot Anup Shakya, the three-member crew included co-pilot Sachendra Shrestha and air hostess Sadiksha Gurung.
The passengers included a foreigner whose nationality was not known immediately.
The aircraft was returning to Kathmandu from Lamidanda airport in Khotang district.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal said two helicopters had been sent to search for the missing aircraft.
