EXPLAINER: Why did Nepal plane crash in fair weather?
By DAVID RISING
Associated Press
BANGKOK (AP) — Yeti Airlines flight 691 crashed Sunday just before landing in Nepal’s tourist city of Pokhara, the gateway to a popular hiking area in the Himalayas, after a 27-minute trip from Kathmandu. At least 69 of the 72 people aboard have been confirmed dead. Pilots say Nepal can be a challenging place to fly but conditions at the time of the crash were good, with low wind, clear skies and temperatures well above freezing. While an investigation is continuing, experts say video taken of the aircraft just before it crashed indicate that it went into a stall. A pilot who routinely flies an ATR-72-500 plane from India to Nepal said the region’s topography, with its mountain peaks and narrow valleys, raises the risk of accidents.
