Kathmandu: A small passenger plane operated by a private airline in Nepal went missing on Sunday with 22 people on board, including four Indians, airline officials said.

The Tara Air 9 NAET twin-engine aircraft lost contact while flying from the tourist town of Pokhara, some 200 km northwest of  Kathmandu, to Jomsom, about 80 km to the northwest, they said. The aircraft, which was on a 15 minute scheduled flight, lost contact shortly after take-off at 9.55 am local time.

The aircraft was hosting 4 Indian and 3 Japanese nationals. The remaining were Nepali citizens and the aircraft had 22 passengers including the crew, the reports stated.

As per the Police officials, the aircraft has been suspected to have crashed in the “Titi” area of Lete in the mountainous Mustang district, which is the fifth-largest district of the Himalayan nation and hosts the pilgrimage of Muktinath Temple.

The Nepal Government has deployed two private helicopters from Mustang and Pokhara for the search for missing aircraft. Nepal Army chopper is also being prepared to be deployed for the search, said Phadindra Mani Pokharel, spokesperson at Home Ministry.