Flight operations at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, resumed after a brief suspension of 98 minutes on Monday morning, following an emergency incident involving a Turkish Airlines aircraft.
According to Gyanendra Bhul, Assistant Spokesperson of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, airport operations were halted at 6:34am after a fire broke out in the aircraft’s right main landing gear during landing procedures. Services resumed at 8:12am once the situation was brought under control.
The aircraft became stranded on Taxiway Bravo, with approximately 30 percent of the plane positioned on the taxiway and the remaining 70 percent occupying the runway, forcing a complete suspension of both domestic and international flight operations, according to news reports.
A total of 288 passengers and crew were on board, including 11 crew members. Preliminary reports indicate that a tyre in the right landing gear caught fire shortly after landing. Authorities suspect possible causes such as a hard landing, tyre pressure failure, or technical malfunction, though a full investigation is underway.
All passengers were safely evacuated using emergency slides. Officials confirmed that two passengers sustained minor finger injuries during the evacuation process.
Both the airline’s maintenance, repair and overhaul team and Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority Flight Safety Standards Department have launched separate investigations to determine the exact cause of the incident.
