Plane with 21 passengers skids off runway at Kathmandu Airport, 5 hurt

Nepal's only international airport had to be closed for some 11 hours after a domestic aircraft skidded off the recently repaired runway, officials said Sunday.

The Jetstream 41 was flying in to Kathmandu from Nepalgunj in southern Nepal late Saturday with 21 passengers onboard when it suffered a runway excursion before coming to a halt onto the adjoining grassland. 

According to Chettri, five of the passengers sustained minor injuries without any serious threats, while remaining passengers and the crew members were safe.

"The Aircraft bearing the call sign 9NAHW was carrying 21 passengers from Nepalgunj to Kathmandu. It skidded off the runway at around 8:30 PM (Local Time) on Saturday," TIA General Manager Raj Kumar Chettri told ANI.

According to Chettri, five of the passengers sustained minor injuries without any serious threats, while remaining passengers and the crew members were safe.

The airport reopened at 8 am Sunday after the aircraft was moved. 

The incident comes amid mounting safety concerns over cracks on the runway's surface, which was repaired only recently. 

In April a Malaysian jet with 139 people on board aborted its takeoff and skidded off the runway. 

(With inputs from ANI)