Nepal tragedy: Pokhara-bound plane crashes with 72 onboard; Here's what exactly happened

Following the spine-chilling crash of the Nepal aircraft ANC ATR 72 that claimed the lives of 68 passengers onboard, it has been learnt that the fatal plane crash took place nearly two kilometres away from Pokhara International Airport. 

The Nepal government has ordered the formation of a five-member committee to carry out the investigation to determine the reason behind the Pokhara plane crash. This committee of experts is likely to search for the 'black box' of the plane to find out what exactly transpired onboard the plane moments before it crashed. 

Where did the plane crash? 

According to various reports, the plane took off from Kathmandu on Sunday, January 15, morning and crashed on the banks of the Seti river. While speaking to Republic Media Network, Mayor of Nepal's Pokhara Dhana Raj Acharya informed that the tragic incident took place nearly two kilometres away from Pokhara International Airport. 

"It is a very tragic situation. The accident took place two kilometres away from Pokhara airport. The exact region where the accident took place is not confirmed but the accident took place at the corner of a river where there is a Basti 50 metres around the region," the Pokhara mayor told Republic TV. 

What exactly happened?

As per the graph showing the details of the aircraft's movement, it was learnt that the pilot of the aircraft struggled for nearly 40 minutes in the air before the crash took place. According to the graph, it has been revealed that the Nepal aircraft rose to a peak altitude of almost 1,24,900 feet with a track angle of 20 degrees and 78 kts ground speed before it nosedived in western Nepal's Pokhara. Notably, the altitude at which the aircraft was flying was unnatural as commercial aircraft typically fly between 31,000 and 38,000 feet high. 

However, the exact reason for the plane crash has not been revealed yet as the black box has not been recovered so far. Notably, the reason for the crash could only be ascertained after the recovery of the black box. 

Notably, a 'black box' is an instrument that records the performance of an aircraft and flight parameters, including factors such as airspeed, altitude, vertical acceleration and fuel flow. It actually comprises two components -- the flight data recorder (FDR) and a cockpit voice recorder (CVR).