For
starters in Crossword – ‘Plane Crash in Himalayas’ was an easy clue (Anagram of
Plane) – Nepal .. .. but a plane crash is horrendous !!
Mustang
Caves or Sky Caves of Nepal are a collection of some 10,000 man-made caves dug
into the sides of valleys in the Mustang District of Nepal. Explorations of these caves by conservators
and archaeologists have been going for centuries – they are situate on the steep valley walls near the Kali
Gandaki River in Upper Mustang. Research groups have continued to investigate
these caves, but no one has yet understood who built the caves and why they
were built.
Kathmandu –
Tribhuvan International Airport appeared more akin to Vijayawada Railway
station – there were so many aircrafts – big, small, smaller – and belonging to
so many Airlines of so many different countries. Travellers, tourists, many of them aspiring
to trek Himalayas were steaming in from different parts of the globe – there
are many Airlines too. Nepal Airlines
Corporation is the flag carrier of Nepal. Founded in 1958, it is the oldest
airline of the country. Of the many
other Airlines – there is another – now most searched on web – “Tara Air”. It is a subsidiary of Yeti Airlines, found
that Yeti too were operating especially between Pokhara and Jomsam.
Sad to read
that a turboprop Twin Otter 9N-AET plane operated by Tara Air had lost contact
minutes after it took off from the tourist city of Pokhara around 10 am on
Sunday.The Canadian-built plane was flying from the city of Pokhara to Jomsom, a popular tourist town
in central Nepal. Reports add that this
is not the first air crash to take place in Nepal; a 2018 AFP report had stated
that there have been 27 fatal plane crashes in the country in the past three
decades, an average of one almost each year. Most of these involved small
aircraft.
It appears that there
would be no survivors – rescue teams in
Nepal have pulled out 14 of the 22 bodies from the wreckage of a Tara Air's
plane that crashed on 29.5.2022 morning in Kowang village of the Mustang
district. Four Indians were also on board the ill-fated aircraft.News agency
AFP quoted spokesman saying, "Fourteen bodies have been recovered so far,
search continues for the remaining. The weather is very bad but we were able to
take a team to the crash site. No other flight has been possible."The
search operation for the missing Tara Air's 9 NAET twin-engine aircraft resumed
this morning. The Nepal Army along with
search and rescue operation troops physically located the site of the Nepalese
private plane crash at Sanosware, Thasang-2, Mustang.Pieces of the wreckage of
the passenger plane that crashed on Sunday were found at 14,500 feet in Sano
Sware Bhir of Thasang in Mustang district in northwestern Nepal, after about 20
hours since the plane went missing, the Nepal Army said.A team of 15 Nepali
Army soldiers has been dropped near the crash site to retrieve the bodies, news
agency ANI quoted Nepal Army spokesperson as saying.
We suspected all the
passengers on board the aircraft have lost their lives. Our preliminary
assessment shows that no one could have survived the plane crash, but official
statement is due," Phadindra Mani Pokhrel, Spokesperson, Nepal's Home
Ministry was quoted as saying by ANI.The search operation was halted on Sunday
morning due to snowfall. Meanwhile, helicopters have now been deployed for
search and rescue operation in Mustang district.
The Canadian-built
aircraft took off for Jomsom from Pokhara at 9:55 am on Sunday (29 May, 2022)
and merely within 15 minutes after take off, it lost contact with the control
tower. The flight between Pokhara to Jomsom, a popular tourist town in central
Nepal, usually takes 20-25 minutes.The Indians, who were on board the Tara Air
craft that crashed, were from the same family and were residents of Thane in
Maharashtra. Of the total 22 people on board the Tara Air flight, 19 were
passengers and three crew members. Two German nationals, four Indians and 13
Nepali citizens were among the those on the flight.
Media reports suggest that
there are multiple reasons why flying in Nepal is tricky and dangerous. The
mountains, poor regulation and lack of new planes have contributed to the
country’s poor aviation record.The terrain has been attributed as the toughest
challenge for flying in the Himalayan nation.
Furthermore, the weather changes quickly in the mountains, creating
treacherous flying conditions.Another cause of these crashes is the lack of
proper radar technology — pilots have to navigate the treacherous terrain and
tricky Weather Conditions by sight.Nepal also does not have the required and
sufficient skilled, trained and highly self-motivated civil aviation staff to
perform the assigned duties fully.
Accidents do
happen – and should not deter mankind from travel. For Srivaishnavaites, this place, this route
is of supreme importance. Holy Mukthinath (Salagrammam divyadesam) –
the only divyadesam outside Bharatha kandam – situate at an altitude of 3,710
meters (12,172 feet) at the foot of the
Thorong La mountain pass (part of the Himalayas) in Mustang, Nepal. Certainly
the one situate at the highest altitude.
The name "Mustang" is derived from the Tibetan word meaning,
"Plain of Aspiration” ~ and here is our holy shrine Muktinath.
Devotees reach
Shalagrammam from Jomson (mostly from flight from Pokhara and sometimes from
Kathmandu). Muktinath is Sanskrit name, has religious overtone and emotional
attachment for Sri Vaishnavas. Mukthi
is salvation and the Emperuman in sitting posture here - Muktinath, is the provider of salvation.
Here are two videos taken from Tara flight from Jomsom to Pokhara taken during our visit in 2018: https://youtu.be/w_HdFITI1-k & https://youtu.be/TDmqu7SVwGI
With
regards – S. Sampathkumar
30.5.2022.
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