Violations of operating procedures led to Air Dynasty crash: Report

KATHMANDU: The Air Dynasty helicopter crash in Taplejung that killed seven people, including the sitting tourism minister, took place after it violated standard operating procedures, said a preliminary report of the government’s investigation commission, a report in The Kathmandu Post.

The report, which was submitted to was submitted to Dhan Bahadur Budha, state minister for culture, tourism and civil aviation, on Wednesday, will be made public in 60 days after incorporating comments from aviation regulatory bodies including the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) among others.

Standard operating procedures do not allow placing three people in the front seat at high altitudes, taking off during bad weather conditions, or allowing pilots unfamiliar with the terrain to fly VIPs. All of these standards were found to have been violated by the Air Dynasty helicopter, said the report.

The fatal crash claimed the lives of Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Rabindra Adhikari, prominent tourism entrepreneur Ang Tshiring Sherpa, managing director of Yeti Airlines and the chairman of Air Dynasty, Birendra Prasad Shrestha, deputy director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Dhurba Bhochhibhoya, deputy director of CAAN; Yubaraj Dahal, under-secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office and Arjun Kumar Ghimire, a Nepal Army official.