PIA Flight 688

Pakistan International Airlines Flight 688

Pakistan International Fokker F27 similar to the one that crashed
Accident summary
Date 10 July 2006
Summary Engine failure
Passengers 41
Crew 4
Injuries (non-fatal) 0
Fatalities 45 (all)
Survivors 0
Aircraft type Fokker F27
Operator Pakistan International Airlines
Registration AP-BAL

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Flight 688 (PK688, PIA688) was scheduled to operate from Multan to Lahore and Islamabad at 12:05 pm on 10 July 2006.[1] It crashed into a field[2] after one of its two engines failed shortly before takeoff[3] from Multan International Airport. All 41 passengers and four crewmembers on board were killed.[4]

Victims

The victims included Asmatullah Khan (Manager Legal Services) of Pakistan International Airlines, Justice Muhammad Nawaz Bhatti and Justice Nazir Ahmed Siddiqui, who served on the Lahore High Court. Three military personnel, Vice-Chancellor of Bahauddin Zakariya University, Prof. Dr. Muhammad Naseer Khan, Prof. Dr. Abdul Rauf Sheikh, Professor department of Urdu at Bahauddin Zakariya University, internationally renowned Pakistani Neurosurgeon Prof. Iftikhar Ali Raja and eight women, including two flight attendants and three doctors, were also among those killed. One of the flight attendants was pulled out alive, but later died.[5][6] According to the Daily Jang Lahore newspaper, no one was pulled alive from the plane.

Incident

The plane lost contact with the Multan International Airport control tower two minutes after takeoff.[4] The aircraft hit an electric power line before crashing into a wheat field.[1][2][6] The cause of the crash was the loss of power from the No. 2 engine.[7]

Investigation

A special investigation team has been assembled by PIA that announced they will compile a report about the crash within a week of the accident.[8] At the same time, the Air League of PIA Employees Union has charged the PIA administration with responsibility for the crash. They argue that the airline operated flights with too few crew members, promoted incompetent officials, and carried out substandard overhaul work on aircraft, among other flaws.[9]

Following this incident, all PIA Fokker aircraft were withdrawn from service and replaced with ATR aircraft. Mr. Muhammad Umer Draz Awan, the district manager of Faisalabad immediately visited the site and took control of the area until the managing director of PIA reached the site.

The investigation concluded that errors by maintenance staff led to the engine failure.[10][11]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Dawn – Multan Plane Crash". Dawn. 10 July 2006. Archived from the original on 15 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "All 45 on Pakistani plane killed in crash". Yahoo!. 10 July 2006. Archived from the original on 12 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  3. ↑ "Pakistan police: Crash kills 45". CNN. 10 July 2006. Archived from the original on 21 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "'No survivors' in Pakistan crash". BBC News. 10 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  5. ↑ "45 dead in PIA Fokker crash". geo.tv. 10 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "All 45 die in Pak. plane crash, sabotage ruled out". The Hindu. 10 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  7. ↑ CAA final report, section 4.12, page 16.
  8. ↑ "Probe report into tragic Fokker plane crash within a week: Investigation team". onlinenews.com.pk. 11 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  9. ↑ "PIA administration 'held' responsible for crash". onlinenews.com.pk. 11 July 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
  10. ↑ CAA final report, section 3.9 "Discussion and Analysis", pages 10–12.
  11. ↑ Baqir Sajjad Syed (17 February 2007). "Combination of errors cited for Fokker crash". Dawn. Retrieved 21 July 2013.

"INVESTIGATION REPORT INTO THE CRASH OF F-27 FOKKER FRIENDSHIP-200 REG NO. AP-BAL AT MULTAN ON 10 July 2006". CAA. Retrieved 10 July 2014. (Archive)

External links

Coordinates: 30°17′N 71°25′E / 30.283°N 71.417°E