KATHMANDU, (DNA) – A helicopter with seven people on board crashed into a hillside in central Nepal on Saturday with the condition of the passengers unknown, officials said.

The Kathmandu-bound Altitude Air helicopter was carrying six passengers, including a Japanese trekker, when it lost contact with air traffic control after taking off from the western district of Gorkha.

“We are trying to reach the crash site by air and on foot. But the weather is hampering our rescue operations,” Kathmandu airport general manager Raj Kumar Chettri told.