Plane reported navigation issue before rapid descent and loss of contact
Pakistan’s navy and maritime rescue agency on Wednesday found the wreckage of a Boeing cargo plane that had gone missing the previous night in the Arabian Sea, the country’s airport authority said.
The forces, after searching for 12 hours, said they had successfully located and identified the wreckage of the K2 Airways Cargo B737, which was declared missing the night before, in the waters off Ormara town.
The Pakistan Airport Authority (PAA) confirmed the development in a post on X, adding that rescuers were still searching for the five crew members on board.
A cargo aircraft carrying five crew members crashed into the Arabian Sea off Pakistan’s Karachi coast after losing contact with air traffic controllers during a flight from Sharjah Airport in the UAE, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said.
Search and rescue operations were launched after the Boeing aircraft disappeared from radar late Tuesday, according to the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA). The cause of the incident remains unknown.
The PAA said the aircraft was approaching Karachi when it reported a “navigational system issue” before radar showed it “rapidly descending”.
Sharif expressed “deep sorrow, grief and regret” over the crash involving a private cargo aircraft operated by K2 Airways and offered condolences to the families of the five crew members.
He directed civil aviation authorities, the navy and air force to intensify search efforts and use all available resources. Navy vessels, merchant ships and military aircraft were involved in the operation, according to a source cited by AFP.
Flight lost contact after sudden altitude drop
The Boeing 737, operated by Pakistan-based K2 Airways, was flying from Sharjah to Karachi when it reported a navigation system issue at around 9:18pm local time.
According to the Pakistan Airports Authority, the aircraft was seen on radar rapidly descending and making a sharp change in heading at 9:21pm before communication was lost about 155 nautical miles west of Karachi.
Flight-tracking service Flightradar24 said preliminary ADS-B data showed the aircraft lost altitude, briefly climbed, and then experienced a second steep descent. The last signal showed the plane at about 1,100 feet with a reported descent rate of 22,400 feet per minute.
Video shows aircraft’s final flight path
A video shared by the Pakistan Airports Authority showed the Flightradar24 playback of the aircraft’s final route before contact was lost.
Flightradar24 said the available tracking data indicated a “possible crash”, while noting that the aircraft experienced GNSS interference shortly after take-off from Sharjah, affecting tracking accuracy.
Last communication before aircraft disappeared
The pilots of the K2 Airways cargo plane informed the Karachi Area Control Center (ACC) that the aircraft was “rolling or floating, 1732,” according to reports. Flight records also showed the same transmission.
The message is believed to be the last radio communication from the aircraft before it disappeared over the Arabian Sea west of Karachi.
Source: Gulf News
