Nepali investigators found pilot's error in January plane crash that killed 72 people

ANKARA

Nepali investigators found the pilot’s error in the January plane crash that killed 72 people on board, local media said on Friday.

According to the report, the monitoring pilot of Yeti Airlines flight NYT-691 appeared to have inadvertently pulled the "wrong lever" to operate the wing flaps, causing the plane to crash on Jan. 15 of this year, The Kathmandu Post reported, citing the final investigation report released on Thursday.

“It is likely that the pilot monitoring the course of the flight had misidentified and moved both condition levers (which control fuel supply to the engine) to feather,” the daily said, quoting the report.

In commercial aviation, one pilot is known as the pilot operating, and the other as the monitoring pilot.

“When the pilot flying called for flaps 30, the monitoring pilot did not make an appropriate crosscheck loop as per cockpit resource management training,” it said.

Yeti Airlines' passenger plane crashed while flying from the capital Kathmandu to a new airport in central Pokhara city, killing all on board, including 68 passengers and four crew members.

Nestled in the lap of the giant Himalayas, Nepal has one of the world's toughest terrains and is counted among one of the worst air traffic regions.

Nepal has recorded approximately 104 air crashes since 1955, killing over 800 people to date.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid