Plane carrying 21 people missing in Nepal

Kathmandu: A plane has gone missing in Nepal with 21 people on board.

The small aircraft vanished in the west of the country on Wednesday, an airport official said.

The Twin Otter aircraft, operated by Tara Air, was carrying 18 passengers and a crew of three.

Two foreign nationals are believed to be on board.

The flight was en route from Pokhara, 125 km (80 miles) west of Kathmandu, to Jomsom when it lost contact with the control tower.

"Two helicopters are on a search-and-rescue mission," Pokhara airport official Yogendra Kunwar said.

"There is no trace of the aircraft so far."