KATHMANDU, NEPAL - NOVEMBER 12, 2012: A sudden turn to avoid crosswinds while landing at Kathmandu airport in Nepal
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Co-pilot of fatal Nepal crash met same fate as husband 17 years earlier

The co-pilot of a Yeti Airlines flight that crashed in Nepal last week met the same fate as her pilot husband, who died in a 2006 plane crash flying for the same airline. A passenger aboard the ill-fated flight livestreamed as it happened.

Co-pilot of fatal Nepal crash met same fate as husband who crashed with same airlines in 2006

A tragic turn of events for an airline pilot who died in a plane crash in mid-January, 17 years after her pilot husband met the same fate while flying for the same airline. In 2006, Khatiwada’s husband, Dipak Pokhrel, also a pilot, died in a plane crash while flying for Yeti Airlines.

Yeti Airlines flight 691, flying from Kathmandu, was co-piloted by Anju Khatiwada, 44, when it was approaching the runway. The plane was flying in fair weather over buildings and fields above Pokhara, a Nepalese city in the foothills of the Himalayas, ABC reported.

The plane crashed into a gorge killing all 72 passengers on board, marking the worst air disaster for Nepal in 30 years. Investigators have since recovered the black boxes and are still working to determine the cause of the crash, but early speculation is that the pilots may have failed to fully deploy the flaps, The Hindu reported.

Anju Khatiwada had reportedly pursued years of pilot training in the United States. Her colleagues described her as a skilled pilot who was very motivated, the Associated Press reported.

Airplane passenger captures last moments in a live stream

During the flight, a 26-year-old passenger named Sonu Jaiswal began sending a video livestream on Facebook. The initial footage showed the picturesque landscape below as seen from the plane’s window, as well as panning to reveal fellow passengers who were laughing. Jaiswal turned the camera on himself and smiled.

Then disaster struck.

Suddenly the plane appeared to veer toward its left, and as it did, Jaiswal’s livestream broadcast the cries of frightened passengers. Immediately, the footage turned shaky, and the audio now captured the screeching sound of an engine. Toward the end of the 90-second video, huge flames and smoke had taken over the recorded image.

Everyone aboard the flight perished.

Jaiswal was a father of three children. He worked at a local liquor store in Alawalpur Afga village in Uttar Pradesh state’s Ghazipur district. At least 53 of the 72 passengers who perished were locals of Nepal.