At least 44 people died in the plane crash in Nepal, Reuters reported.

Hundreds of rescuers are searching the hillside where the twin-engine plane ATR 72 of Nepal's Yeti Airlines crashed with 72 people on board.

The plane was on a domestic flight from the Nepalese capital Kathmandu to the tourist town of Pokhara.

Plane crashes in Nepal, at least 16 dead

A spokesman for the Nepal Civil Aviation Authority said weather conditions were good at the time of the crash. 

Footage of the wreckage of the plane was broadcast on television, with part of the terrain near the crash engulfed in flames.

"The plane is on fire," a police spokesman said, adding that rescue teams were having difficulty reaching the crash site.

It is a difficult terrain between two hills near the airport of the city of Pokhara. 

The plane made contact with the Pokhara airport while flying over the Seti River Gorge at 10:50 local time (5:50 GMT) before crashing.

"Half of the plane is on the hillside. The other half fell into the gorge of the Seti River," a local resident told Reuters. 

Today's crash is the worst in Nepal since 2018, when a US Bangla Airlines plane crashed on landing at Kathmandu International Airport.

Then 51 of the 71 passengers on board died. 

Plane crashes are not uncommon in Nepal, home to eight of the world's 14 highest mountain peaks, including Everest.

The weather in the country can change abruptly and create a dangerous situation.

At least 309 people have died in plane and helicopter crashes in Nepal since 2000.

Nepali airlines have been banned from flying into European Union airspace since 2013 due to security concerns.

Viral video of #Nepal Plane crash.

pic.twitter.com/eFROpnCnlR

— Tajamul Fayaz (@TajamulFayaz621) January 15, 2023

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