Eds: Updates number, nationalities of dead and injured =
Kathmandu (dpa) - An aircraft crashed Monday into a mountain as it was trying to land at an airport in north-western Nepal, killing 15 people, authorities said. Six survived.
The crew of the turboprop operated by Agni Air said it was having technical difficulties shortly after taking off from Jomsom Airport in the Mustang district, said Pratap Babu Tiwari, manager of the Civil Aviation Authority in Pokhara, the plane's destination.
The German-made Donier Do-228 was returning to the Jomson Airport when it crashed into a mountain near the narrow airstrip, he said.
Sixteen of those on board were Indians en route to the Hindu pilgrimage site of Muktinath in the Mustang district. Jomsom is also a gateway to several trekking routes.
Thirteen of the Indians were killed. One adult and two girls survived. The other survivors were two Danish nationals and a Nepali flight attendant, police officer Rajendra Singh Bhandari said.
The survivors were airlifted to Pokhara.
Two Nepali crew members also died.
Nepal has a poor air safety record. Government statistics record 71 crashes in the mountainous country's aviation history, which began in 1953. More than 600 people were killed in the accidents.
dpa pt lns tlo
Author: Pratibha Tuladhar
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