Flight to life through a hole in the plane..... ESCAPE FROM JAWS OF DEATH

Sanam Shakya (the man in the red scarf), one of the survivors of the plane crash in Kathmandu in which 49 passengers were killed, with relatives and friends at his home in the Nepal capital after he was discharged from hospital

Sanjay Mandal, TT, Mar 16, 2018, Calcutta: Sanam Shakya, 33, managing director of Lucky Travels and Tour in Kathmandu, was one of the survivors of the plane crash in which 49 passengers were killed in the Nepal capital on Monday.

Shakya was on his way back from Bangladesh with 13 other travel agents who had attended a conference organised by US Bangla Airlines, whose plane eventually crashed.

Shakya recounts his escape:

The plane hovered over the Kathmandu airport for at least 20 minutes, which was not unusual at the busy facility, and circled the runway at least four times. What I found unusual this time was the low altitude at which it was hovering.

The familiar roads and buildings were not there and so I tightly gripped the seat in front of me. But most passengers, unlike me, were unaware of the unusual flight path. There was no announcement.

The plane landed with such force that I can't explain. I could see a fire at the back and the cabin was filling up with smoke. Some passengers tried to smash the windows. So did I.

Then I saw that a part of the fuselage above my window had developed a crack. Three of us started hitting the wall and finally we could make a gap wide enough to sneak out. I jumped out of the hole and fell to the ground.

It was then that panic kicked in and I started running. Probably because of the desperation to stay alive and the shock, I had not felt any pain.

Soon I realised I could not move my right hand. I had hurt myself trying to smash open the cracked fuselage.

The army, fire-fighters, police, ambulance, everyone rushed in soon. I was taken to a hospital from where I was discharged on Wednesday. I can't believe I am with my family again.

I learnt later that three of our delegation members did not survive the crash.