US-Bangla Airlines Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 veers off Kathmandu runway and catches fire: at least 49 dead

A Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 registered S2-AGU from US-Bangla Airlines has veered off the runway on landing at Tribhuvan Internationa Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal. Shortly after the impact, the aircraft caught fire. It is reported that the 17-year-old aircraft (serial number 4041) carried 67 passengers and 4 crew members.

Police say 49 of the 71 passengers and crew have died in the raging fire. Twenty-two people are being treated in hospital for injuries.

The flight originated from Dhaka.

US-Bangla Airlines is a privately owned Bangladeshi airline headquartered in Dhaka and based at Shahjalal International Airport. Because of the accident of flight BS211, the airport has been closed. Inbound flights are either returning to departure airport or diverting to other airports. The airport is now reopened. (see Flightradar24 tweet at the bottom of this article)

The belated Dash 8 Q400 previously operated for SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Royal Jordanian and Augsburg Airways. It is not the first mishap during landing with this particular aircraft: web site Aviation-safety.net is reporting that on 4 September 2015, upon landing, because of a technical failure and due to adverse weather conditions, the plane skidded from the runway into the grass. There were no personal injuries but the wheels got damaged after the impact. (source: ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 179261)