Pakistan passenger airliner crash kills dozen near Karachi airport

At least seven people have reportedly survived after a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crashed in Karachi with 98 people on board.

Flight PK 8303 went down in a residential area of the city on Friday as the Airbus A320 plane, carrying 91 passengers and seven crew, was approaching Jinnah International Airport.

The airline said the pilot had reported technical issues and witnesses said the aircraft, flying from Lahore, attempted to land two or three times before hitting a mobile tower and crashing into houses in the Model Colony area, a few miles away from the airport.

Rescue workers gather at the site after a Pakistan International Airlines flight crashed in a residential neighbourhood in Karachi on May 22, 2020. - A Pakistan passenger plane with more than 100 people believed to be on board crashed in the southern city of Karachi on May 22, the country's aviation authority said. (Photo by Asif HASSAN / AFP) (Photo by ASIF HASSAN/AFP via Getty Images)
‘Mayday, mayday’ plane’s last message

Smoke billowed from the scene where caved-in roofs could be seen as debris lay scattered in the streets while ambulances hurried through chaotic crowds, with fears residents are injured or dead.

He also said an independent enquiry will take place but neither PIA nor the civil aviation authority will take part in it.

Local TV stations showed footage of a man on a stretcher who they said was a survivor.

Source: skynews