A Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A320 crashed in a residential area in the city of Karachi, the largest metropolitan area in the country, on Friday.
There are conflicting reports about the crash. Some are saying that everyone aboard the jet perished, and other sources are saying that there were survivors. Early on, it was said that there were 91 passengers aboard, but more recent figures indicate that there were 107 passengers and crew on the plane.
It isn’t yet known if any people on the ground were killed or injured, but there are reports the that aircraft struck the tops of a number of houses before its final impact. Photographs of firefighters on scene showed crews battling fires.
Authorities said that the airliner was on final approach to Karachi from Lahore, another large city in the eastern part of the country. Weather in Karachi at the time of the crash was reported as hazy sunshine.
The plane was among the first flights returning to scheduled service after the country had shut down air travel as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Experts have already begun to ask about how the airline, which is a national airline of Pakistan, handled the recurrency of pilots who were grounded during the pandemic shutdown.
Investigators are at the scene. More details were expected to emerge soon. We’ll keep you updated.
