26/08/2026
Her husband was a pilot. Dipak Pokhrel. In June 2006, his Yeti Airlines flight went down near Jumla, Nepal. Anju lost him in that moment. 💙
She was left alone with their child. Devastated. Most people would never fly again.
Anju Khatiwada was not most people.
Against her family's wishes, she used the insurance payout from Dipak's death to train as a pilot in the United States. People thought she was running toward pain. She said she was honoring his memory.
"She was determined to become a pilot," a relative told reporters.
She joined Yeti Airlines in 2010—the same airline where her husband died. Same cockpit environment. Same risks. Same fears. But she showed up anyway. ✈️
For 13 years, she flew. 6,400+ hours of experience. Colleagues described her as skilled, motivated, always ready. She flew the Kathmandu-to-Pokhara route regularly. Built a career. Built a life from ashes.
She proved that women don't break under tragedy. They break through it.
Then January 15, 2023.
Anju was co-piloting Yeti Airlines Flight 691 from Kathmandu to Pokhara. 72 people on board. Clear weather. A routine flight she'd flown hundreds of times.
The ATR-72 encountered a critical event near Pokhara airport. All 72 perished. Including Anju Khatiwada. 44 years old.
The same airline. The same type of tragedy. 16 years, 7 months apart. 💙
What her story meant:
Anju didn't just survive loss—she transformed it. She didn't let fear define her. She let purpose define her. She got her license. She flew. She worked. She showed other women in Nepal that you can choose your own path, even when that path is terrifying.
For 13 years, she proved women in aviation belong in the cockpit. Belong in command. Belong in the sky.
Then tragedy took her. Along with 71 others.
Remembering all 72:
The incident was Nepal's deadliest aviation accident in three decades. 57 Nepalis. 5 Indians. 4 Russians. 2 South Koreans. 1 each from Argentina, Ireland, Australia, France.
Families destroyed. Lives ended. Dreams interrupted.
But Anju's story—her resilience, her determination, her refusal to let tragedy stop her—that endures. ✈️
She became a pilot to honor her husband. And now we honor her. 💙 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
