 The wreckage of Flight 601 minutes after the crash | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 28 September 2012 |
| Summary | Loss of power on take-off for undetermined reasons following bird strike and dual-engine failure |
| Site | Madhyapur Thimi, Nepal 27°40′50″N 85°21′22″E / 27.68056°N 85.35611°E |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Dornier 228 |
| Operator | Sita Air |
| IATA flight No. | ST601 |
| ICAO flight No. | STA601 |
| Registration | 9N-AHA |
| Flight origin | Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, Nepal |
| Destination | Tenzing-Hillary Airport, Lukla, Nepal |
| Occupants | 19 |
| Passengers | 16 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 19 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Sita Air Flight 601 (ST601/STA601) was a Nepalese domestic passenger flight, operated by Sita Air from Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal's capital Kathmandu to Tenzing-Hillary Airport in Lukla. On 28 September 2012, the Dornier 228 serving the route crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Kathmandu shortly after takeoff, killing all 19 people on board.
The final report, published by the Nepal's Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission (NAICC), determined that a thrust reduction occurred during the take-off roll, but the cause of the anomaly could not be determined. Subsequent crew inability to maintain speed above stall speed, followed by the insufficient height of the aircraft, led to the aircraft crashing.