A passenger plane carrying 19 people crashed during takeoff in Kathmandu on Wednesday with the pilot surviving but "many" others aboard dead, police in the Nepali capital told AFP.

Nepal has a woeful track record on aviation safety and the Himalayan republic has seen a spate of deadly light plane and helicopter crashes over the decades.

The Saurya Airlines flight was carrying two crew and 17 of the company's staff members, Nepali police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki told AFP.

"The pilot has been rescued and is being treated. It is not possible to confirm the status of others on board right now. Many have not survived," he added.

Eighteen Nepalis and one foreigner were aboard the flight, Gyanendra Bhul of Nepal's Civil Aviation Authority told AFP, adding he did not have any details on the latter's nationality.

Bhul added that the flight was being conducted for either technical or maintenance purposes, without giving further detail.

Images of the aftermath shared by Nepal's military showed the plane's fuselage split apart and burnt to a husk.

Around a dozen soldiers in camouflage were standing on top of the wreckage with the surrounding earth coated in fire retardant.

The plane crashed at around 11:15 am (0530 GMT), the military said in a statement, adding that the army's quick response team had been lending assistance with rescue efforts.

News portal Khabarhub reported that the airplane had caught fire after skidding on the runway.

The plane was scheduled to fly on Nepal's busiest air route between Kathmandu and Pokhara, an important tourism hub in the Himalayan republic.

Saurya Airlines exclusively flies Bombardier CRJ 200 jets, according to its website.