Accident
On 16 February 2014, Nepal Airlines Flight 183 departed Pokhara Airport with fifteen passengers and three crew members, scheduled to arrive at Jumla Airport at 13:45 NST. Thirty minutes into the flight, due to weather conditions, the aircraft attempted to divert to Bhairahawa Airport, after which radio contact was lost. The last communication occurred at 13:13, when the crew reported their approximate position to Bhairahawa Tower near Khidim. The aircraft subsequently crashed in the jungle of Masine Lek, Dhikura. Although the crash was not witnessed, local residents observed wreckage. Poor visibility initially hampered rescue efforts. When rescue teams reached the site, they found the bodies of all eighteen occupants scattered on the hill. According to Nepal's Army, the crash site was at an altitude of 7,000 feet. Wreckage fragments were found up to 7 kilometers from the crash site.
Aircraft
The aircraft involved was a DHC-6 Twin Otter (registration 9N-ABB), delivered to Nepal Airlines in 1971. It had previously been involved in two incidents. On 10 June 1973, the aircraft was hijacked by three members of the Nepali Congress party during a flight from Biratnagar to Kathmandu. The hijackers demanded money and escaped after landing in Bihar, India. No injuries were reported among the three crew and 18 passengers. On 5 July 1992, the aircraft lost directional control during takeoff from Jumla on a flight to Surkhet, ran off the runway, and struck the airport perimeter fence. There were no passengers on board, and the three crew were uninjured.
Passengers and Crew
According to Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal official Ram Hari Sharma, all on board except one Danish passenger were Nepalese, including a child. The flight carried 15 passengers and 3 crew members.
Investigation
The Nepalese Government formed a four-member probe team to investigate the crash. The aircraft's flight recorder was recovered from the site, and the team was expected to report within two months. The final investigation report, released on 25 August 2014, attributed the accident to a lack of crew coordination, a lack of situational awareness on the part of the crew, and poor weather conditions.