Family members and relatives of passengers onboard the Twin Otter aircraft operated by Tara Air, weep outside the airport in Pokhara on May 29, 2022. (Photo by PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP via Getty Images) KATHMANDU, Nepal - Rescuers searching a mountainside in Nepal on Monday recovered the bodies of 17 of the 22 people who were on board a plane that crashed a day earlier, officials said.A search is continuing for the remaining people, airline spokesperson Sudarshan Bartaula said.Bartaula said rescuers believe some bodies are pinned under the plane’s wreckage.
Rescuers working with their bare hands have not been able to move the metal debris, he said.The Tara Air turboprop Twin Otter lost contact with the airport tower on Sunday while flying on a scheduled 20-minute flight in an area of deep river gorges and mountaintops.Four Indians and two Germans were on the plane, Tara Air said.
The three crew members and other passengers were Nepali nationals, it said.The wreckage was located by villagers who had been searching in the area for the Yarsagumba fungus, which is commonly referred to as Himalayan Viagra, according to local news reports.A photograph and video released by the official show parts of the plane scattered on a hillside, with its 9N-AET registration visible.