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At least 18 people have been killed when a passenger plane crashed on landing at a remote airfield in Nepal's Everest region on October 8, 2008. Report says that out of the total passengers killed majority were German tourists. The Yeti airlines aircraft caught fire when it crashed near the sloping run-way. It took almost two hours to extinguish the fire. According to Nepalese officials, the mishap took place due to heavy clouds. Besides 14 foreigners, there were five Nepalese who board the Yeti plane which was on its way to Lukla from Kathmandu. However, the pilot of the plane is reported to have survived the tragic accident.
Lukla's Tenzing-Hillary airport, renamed after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, witnesses about 50 flights per day when the weather remains favorable. However, the weather at Lukla keeps on changing constantly creating problems for aircraft to go for regular landing and take-off. Yeti, a privately owned domestic airline, has contributed much to the tourism industry of Nepal by running its service to many far-flung destinations across Nepal. Every year innumerable tourists from across the globe come to visit Nepal and Yeti airlines provides them suitable services.
