The PIA PK 8383, an Airbus A320 crashed in a residential area in Pakistan’s Karachi on Friday afternoon.
A still from the video of the crash (Picture Courtesy: Twitter @GFarooqi)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash: Pakistan PM Imran Khan
- PIA CEO Arshad Malik is on the ground in Karachi
- Reports are coming in that some passengers may have survived the crash
Rescue efforts are underway in Karachi where a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight crashed on Friday afternoon, minutes before it was scheduled to land at the Jinnah International Airport. The aircraft, PK 8303, an Airbus A320 was carrying 91 passengers and 8 crew members.
The flight took off from Lahore and was headed to Karachi. Some final intercepts between the pilot and the air-traffic controller reveal that he was told about the availability of two runways at the Karachi airport. Local media reports suggest that the aircraft lost both its engines and crashed into Model Town, a residential area in Karachi.
Here’s footage from a CCTV camera that shows the exact moment PIA PK 8303 crashed:
Footage of #Airbus320 #PK8303 moments before #PlaneCrash #Karachi pic.twitter.com/hASqgiY0ZB
— Gharidah Farooqi (@GFarooqi) May 22, 2020
The video shows PK 8303 losing altitude and crashing into the residential society not far from Karachi airport. A mushroom cloud of thick black smoke emerges from the crash site. Other videos from Karachi show scared locals moving out of their homes to catch a glimpse of the debris even as ambulances and first responders rush to the scene.
Ground Zero Karachi pic.twitter.com/Qi3acK9ct5
— Kartikeya Sharma (@kartikeya_1975) May 22, 2020
Most recent inputs say that the Pakistan Army Quick Reaction Force and Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops are at the crash site and undertaking search and rescue operations. Army choppers are also being deployed to assess the damage. An emergency has been declared in all major hospitals across Karachi to deal with this tragedy.
VIDEO: A Pakistani passenger plane with nearly 100 people on board crashed into a residential area in the southern city of Karachi on Friday, killing several people on the ground pic.twitter.com/dkmsahN9qf
— AFP news agency (@AFP) May 22, 2020
