KARACHI: According to preliminary report submitted to the Aviation Division yesterday (22nd of June, 2020) PIA’s aircraft A-320 was technically fit and it was the overconfidence of captain and negligence of air control tower that caused the tragedy on 22nd day of May, 2020.
PIA flight PK8303, carrying 99 people including 8 crew members, crashed near Karachi airport claiming lives of 97 people onboard. A child working in one of the houses, damaged by the falling plane, also perished.
Investigation Team: CAA had notified an investigation team (with a target to present the report by 22nd of June, 2020) headed by its Aircraft Accident and Investigation Board (AAIB) President Air Commodore Usman Ghani. Others in the team were Wing Commander Malik Imran, Technical Investigation Group Additional Director Captain Touqeer, Pakistan Air Force Safety Board Ops Investigator Kamran and Air Traffic Control Ops Joint Director Nasir Majeed. It is pertinent to mention here that other reports of incidents occurring since 2010 will also be put before the house along with A320 crash report.
While insinuating that there was no indication of technical fault, the report pointed fingers at CAA Officials, Cockpit Crew, Control Tower and the Air Traffic Control for making mistakes repeatedly.
According to the Report:
1) When the pilot endeavored to land first the speed and the altitude of the aircraft were more than the recommended parameters;
2) In the first landing, the aircraft touched the terrain at the middle of 9,000 meter long runway;
3) Though the speed and altitude was more than recommended parameters the control tower permitted landing;
4) Air traffic control did not provide the control tower with the radio frequency;
5) Pilot did not inform the control tower about jamming of the landing gears;
6) Attempt of second landing was pilot’s wrong decision;
7) It was observed that the A320 remained in the air for 17 minutes after the first landing attempt when both the engines failed;
8) Air Site Unit failed to collect the fragments of A-320 engine from runway for 12 hours;
9) Against the SOP other aircraft were allowed to land on the same runway that would have caused another disaster;
10) It has also been reported that Air Traffic Control officials performed duties till 7PM whereas, they should have been relieved immediately after the crash.
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