KATHMANDU, Dec 31: As 2024 nears its end, the world eagerly anticipates the grand arrival of the New Year. Reflecting on 2024, the year brought numerous frightening and distressing events, some triggering catastrophic disasters and severe humanitarian crisis. In this context, 2024 proved far more horrifying and terrifying than previous years.
Air crashes were among the disasters that occurred in 2024, causing significant loss of human life. The world will likely feel the ripple of these air crashes for a long time to come.
In 2024, eight major plane crashes occurred, claiming the lives of more than 400 people. Reports indicate that bad weather and engine failure caused most of these crashes. One of the crashes claimed the lives of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the Vice President of Malawi, Saulos Klaus Chilima.
South Korean jet crash claims 179 lives at the end of the year
As the year was coming to an end, a tragic plane crash took place in South Korea last Sunday. A Jeju Air flight that had taken off from Bangkok crashed at Muan Airport in South Korea, killing 179 people. The plane was carrying 181 people, including 175 passengers and six crew members. Authorities recovered 179 bodies and rescued two people. Full details about the crash are not yet available, but initial reports suggest that a malfunction in the landing gear prevented the plane's wheels from opening during landing. The plane made an emergency belly landing, and the crash followed, according to news agency Associated Press (AP).
Kazakhstan accident: Russia's fault
Just four days before the plane crash in South Korea, on December 25, a Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed in Kazakhstan. In the accident, 38 people died while 29 others were rescued alive.
Israel downs Iranian drone and strikes Syria, F-16 crashes
The plane was en route from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny, the capital of Russia's Chechnya region. However, it had to make an emergency landing about 3 kilometers away from the Kazakh city of Aktau. During this process, the plane crashed, breaking into two parts and catching fire. While the United States has blamed Russia for the crash, Russian President Putin has apologized for the incident. However, he has neither confirmed nor denied the accusations made by the United States. He simply expressed his sorrow to the President of Azerbaijan over the accident occurring in their airspace.
International security experts believe that Russia, engaged in a war with Ukraine, may have caused the crash when its air defense system, activated to defend against Ukrainian drone attacks, detected the aircraft.
Brazil air crash claims 62 lives
On August 9, a flight from Voepass, flight number 2283, crashed in the city of Vinhoedo, São Paulo state, Brazil. The crash led to the death of 62 people, all of whom were on board. This was a domestic flight within Brazil. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the crash.
Horrific crash of Saurya Airlines in Kathmandu
In July 2024, a Saurya Airlines plane crashed at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu while en route to Pokhara. The crash resulted in the death of 18 people. The accident occurred shortly after takeoff around 11 am of that day. Among the deceased, 17 were Saurya Airlines employees, while the remaining two were crew members. The 21-year-old plane was being tested after repairs, and only the captain survived the crash.
Malawi crash claims Vice President Chilima’s life
On June 10, Malawi's Vice President Saulos Klaus Chilima died in a plane crash. After a 24-hour search, the Vice President's remains were found in the wreckage of the plane. Nine people were on board, and none of them survived. The plane went missing from radar on the morning of June 10. According to news agency Reuters, the aviation authority made multiple attempts to contact the plane but was unsuccessful.
The plane that took off from Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, was scheduled to land at Mzuzu Airport after 45 minutes. However, it was unable to land due to bad weather. The plane was then ordered to return to Lilongwe. After that, the plane went missing. Malawi sought assistance from the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Israel to search the plane.
Iranian helicopter crash
On May 19 of this year, Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi's helicopter crashed. In the accident, President Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, along with 9 others, lost their lives. Three helicopters were part of the Iranian President's convoy, and two of them reached a safe location. The crash occurred near the Azerbaijani border city of Julfa, which is 600 kilometers from the Iranian capital, Tehran.
It is said that the helicopter crashed while crossing the mountainous terrain in thick fog. Some speculate that Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad, which is in conflict with Iran, may have caused the helicopter to crash. However, there is no evidence to confirm this claim, and neither Israel nor Iran has acknowledged it.
Plane crash in Ivanovo, Russia
On March 12 of this year, an Ilyushin II-76 cargo plane crashed in Ivanovo Oblast, Russia. The accident resulted in the death of 15 people, including seven passengers and eight crew members. The crash occurred due to a fire in one of the plane's engines.
Russian military plane crash claims 74 lives
The Russian military plane crash, which claimed 74 lives, was the first major plane accident of this year. The accident occurred in the Belgorod region of Russia in January. The crash resulted in the deaths of 74 people, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners and 9 Russian crew members. After the incident, Russia's Ministry of Defense claimed that a Ukrainian missile shot down the plane, while Ukraine referred to it as a Russian conspiracy.
