Kathmandu, February 7. The special inquiry commission tasked with investigating the Yeti Air Crash Tragedy has revealed its preliminary findings on the events that occurred on January 15 in Pokhara.

According to the report, the propellers of both engines were found to have gone to feathering in the base leg in course of landing. This indicates that both of the engines had malfunctioned and were in an idle-feathering state.

Feathering in Propellors

When an engine fails in flight, the airplane’s movement through the air keeps the propeller spinning, much like a windmill. If one engine acts as a windmill, the plane will lean towards the side of a malfunctioning engine. The feathering feature in an aircraft allows the pilot to control the propellor blades such that resistance is minimized and tilting (yawning) are minimized.

“The data extracted from the flight data recorder(black box) and cockpit voice recorder were analyzed at the Singapore-based Transport Safety Investigation Bureau,” commission coordinator and aviation expert Buddhi Sagar Lamichhane said.

Lamichhane further said that the Commission is continuing its investigation into the technical and human aspects. “The final report would be published later,” he said. 

Yeti Air Tragedy – Nepal’s deadliest plane crash in three decades

A twin-prop turbojet-powered ATR 72-500 passenger aircraft of Yeti Airlines was scheduled to fly from Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport to Pokhara’s newly built International airport on Sunday (January 15).

While on a final approach to Pokhara International Airport, at about 10:56 am, the 9N-ANC aircraft crashed at a nearby gorge of the Seti river. All of the 68 passengers and four crew members on board, including 67 men, 25 women, three children, and three infants died during the tragedy.

The incident was identified as Nepal’s deadliest air traffic accident in the last 30 years. It occurred only 15 days after the Pokhara International airport opened for business.