Rescuers search for plane that crashed in Nepal with 22 on board
PBS NewsHourSep 09, 2022
The Facts
Officials have retrieved the last of the 22 bodies of the people who died in a plane crash in the Nepal mountains on Sun. One of the plane's black boxes (the pilot's voice recording) was also retrieved.
All the bodies were flown to the country's capital, Kathmandu, where doctors are performing autopsies at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Tara Air said in a statement. They will be handed over to relatives after the autopsies are completed.
The Spin
Narrative A
This tragedy is sadly but the latest in Nepal's poor record with aviation safety. There are shortfalls in investments in plane manufacturing and infrastructure, and the government doesn't regulate their airlines strictly enough. In 2013, the European Union banned all Nepal-based airlines from flying in its airspace over these concerns.
Narrative B
The Nepali government's regulation of its airlines may not be perfect, but Nepal also has some of the world's most remote and tricky runways, flanked by snow-capped peaks with approaches that pose a challenge for even accomplished pilots. Conditions were extremely challenging when this catastrophe occurred.
