Local police said the UK travellers were killed along with five Chinese people, as well as three passengers and four crew members from the Himalayan country.

The twin-engine propeller plane crashed, killing all on board, shortly after take-off near the capital, Kathmandu.

The British ambassador John Tucknott, said: "I can confirm that British nationals are involved although I cannot, as yet, confirm the exact number."

The twin-engine propeller plane crashed shortly after take-off near Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.

The plane, from domestic airline Sita Air was heading east, in good weather, towards Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest and a popular destination for trekkers.

It crashed near the Manohara River to the south west of the city.

Witnesses say it burst into flames and came down in a field.

The pilot reported trouble two minutes after take-off, and airport officials said the plane appeared to have been trying to turn back.

It is not known whether the plane was already on fire before it crashed.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control as police rescuers, in a desperate search for survivors, pulled out only bodies.

Thousands of westerners head to the Himalayas every year to trek.

The crash follows an avalanche which killed eight people on another Nepal peak on Sunday.