Human error, fog to blame for Nepal WWF crash

Kathmandu, Oct 21: Human error and bad weather were responsible for last month's crash of a helicopter chartered by world conservation group WWF in which 24 people were killed, the chief investigator said today.

Junior forest minister Gopal Rai and diplomats were among those on board the Russian-made helicopter that crashed on September 23 near Ghunsa village in Taplejung district, 300 km (190 miles) east of Kathmandu. There were no survivors.

Keshari Raj Pandit, chief of the seven-member government-appointed investigation commission, said the pilot had failed to inform the nearest control tower before and after taking off from Ghunsa.

''The pilot does not appear to have fulfilled the mandatory flight rules,'' Pandit, who has already submitted his preliminary findings to the government, told Reuters.

The rugged area is near Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak at 8,586 metres.

''The helicopter crashed in foggy weather into the hills, caught fire and then had a final stop at 4,033 metres (13,232 feet),'' Pandit said, referring to the place where its wreckage was found.

''The flight data recorder shows that the machine was functioning until the last moment.'' The aircraft was carrying 17 Nepalis, two Russians, a Finnish diplomat, two Americans, a Canadian and a Swiss-Australian.

They had attended a ceremony to mark the handover of a conservation project supported by the WWF to a local community and were returning to Kathmandu.

REUTERS