Pakistan International Airlines flight, going from Lahore to Karachi, has crashed moments before the landing. The aircraft was carrying around 107 passengers, crashed over a residential colony near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi.
According to India Today, PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar has confirmed the crash. The PIA flight PK 8303 was carrying 91 passengers and 8 crew members. As per the local media reports, the aircraft had lost both its engines. Eyewitnesses said the engines were on fire. The aircraft’s tail hit a four-storey building in the Jinnah Garden area of Model Colony that borders the airport runways. The visuals on the local media show a huge plume of smoke coming out from some houses in Karachi’s Model colony.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: “Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. . . Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.”
Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 22, 2020
Pakistan’s Minister of Health & Population Welfare has declared an emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash, local media has reported. Pakistan had resumed commercial passenger air travel on May 16 after a prolonged nationwide lockdown due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
