Kathmandu airport shut after aircraft suffers 'runway excursion'

Tribhuvan International Airport was shut down until 5:00 pm today after a Yeti Airlines aircraft suffered a "runway excursion" during landing, airport officials said.

All 68 passengers, including two minors, and four crew members on board safely disembarked from the aircraft, the airlines said on its Twitter account. The aircraft, which took off from Nepalgunj airport for Kathmandu, careened around 20 metres off the runway and onto grass while landing at Tribhuvan International Airport from the Koteshwor side.

The incident has affected take-offs and landings of all inbound and outbound flights at the only international airport in Nepal.

According to the airport, all incoming flights to Kathmandu have been diverted to other airports.

Although Tribhuvan International Airport, in a statement, said that three passengers sustained minor injuries during the incident and have been taken to Kathmandu Medical College, a medical officer at the hospital said that the three individuals had flown to Kathmandu for treatment and were not injured in Friday's incident.

Tribhuvan International Airport General Manager Raj Kumar Chhetri said that firemen, security personnel and rescue workers have been mobilised to remove the aircraft from the runway.

Copyright: The Kathmandu Post/ Asia News Network