An aircraft carrying 44 Spaniards who have been evacuated from Nepal following last Saturday's devastating earthquake arrived in Madrid on Wednesday morning.

The Airbus 301, which was supplied by the Spanish Air Force, also carried Spain's Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo, who explained that many of the evacuees were "exhausted" after their experiences.

A second flight is expected to leave Katmandu on Wednesday with a further 71 Spaniards, as well as Irish, French, Colombian and Mexican citizens, given that Spain has offered places in the 200-seat plane to EU citizens and Latin Americans who have been trapped by the earthquake.

On arrival in Madrid the minister confirmed that a total of 498 Spaniards are known to have been affected by the earthquake, which registered 7.8 on the Richter Scale, and that 103 have still to be accounted for.

Garcia-Margallo said he was worried about these 103 people, adding that a further 245 Spaniards have made contact with the Spanish Consul.

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