The plane of the Nepalese company Sourya Airlines crashed at Kathmandu airport, there were 19 people on board.

The bodies of 18 out of the 19 people on board a Kathmandu flight were recovered after the plane crashed at a Nepal airport on Wednesday, local media said.

The passengers, comprising crew and technical staff, were on board the Pokhara-bound Saurya Airlines plane when it caught on fire around 11 am, the Nepal military said. The pilot of the aircraft has been taken to a hospital, a security official deployed at the airport told news agency PTI.

The plane burst into flames after it skidded off the runway as it began to take off.

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Smoke rises from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, July 24, 2024. Nepalese state television said a plane slid off the runway and crashed while attempting to take off from Kathmandu airport. 

The pilot of the plane survived the crash and has been taken to to the Kathmandu Medical College Hospital for treatment, said a doctor at the hospital who was not authorized to speak to media.

The pilot has injuries to the eyes but not in any danger, the doctor said.

The Saurya Airlines plane was heading from Kathmandu to the resort town of Pokhara.

It was not clear how it slipped.

Local media images showed smoke rising and plane wreckage scattered all over a ditch. A fire has been brought under control.

Tribhuvan International Airport, the main airport in Nepal for international and domestic flights, has been closed as emergency crew worked.

It is monsoon rainy season in Kathmandu but was not raining at the time of the crash. Visibility was low across the capital, however.

Saurya Airlines operates the Bombardier CRJ 200 on domestic routes.