Staff Reporter
Karachi
The Airbus investigation team completed its initial investigation into the Pakistan International Airlines aircraft crash and initial probe suggested the jet crashed after an apparent engine failure.
The team inspected the runway of the Jinnah International Airport. They also visited the air traffic control tower and radar control station. The 11-member investigating team of Airbus reached Pakistan from France on Tuesday to probe into the Pakistan International Airlines plane crash.
Aviation authorities said on Tuesday they have shared their initial findings with the visiting 11-member team from the European plane maker.
“We are providing all possible assistance to the technical experts of Airbus,” said Abdul Hafeez, a spokesperson for PIA. Only two people on board survived the crash, including Zafar Masood, a bank executive.
The plane had made failed attempts to land at the Karachi airport before the crash. Authorities found the plane’s black box and have been guarding the crash site to facilitate the probe.
The Airbus team visited the site were the PK-8303 flight crashed. The technical team inspected the houses that were damaged by the crash. Relevant officers of the civil aviation and PIA were summoned at the crash site.
The Airbus team was briefed about the crash by PIA and fire department officials. The Aircraft Accident and Investigation team were present with the Airbus technical team as well to ascertain the situation. The technical experts studied the remains of the plane and inspected the engines, landing gear, wings and flight control system of the aircraft.
The team of technical advisers left for Pakistan on board special flight AEB1888 of Airbus A330 from French city, Toulouse.
On the ground, 18 homes were damaged but no one was killed, mainly because the local residents were gathered at nearby mosques at the time, officials had said. Eight people on the ground were injured.
So far, authorities have handed over 41 bodies to their families, Hafeez said, adding that DNA tests were underway to identify the remains of the other victims.
The crash took place days after the government allowed resumption of domestic flights ahead of Eidul Fitr. Many of the passengers aboard the flight were families returning home for the holiday.
Meanwhile, the Punjab Forensic Science Agency collected DNA samples from 52 victims of the Karachi plane crash on Tuesday, saying that the DNA reports will be released after Wednesday.
PFSA Director-General Dr Muhammad Tahir Ashraf confirmed that the agency had collected DNA samples from Karachi and returned to Lahore. “DNA samples of 52 deceased individuals and their families have been obtained,” he confirmed. “We will start releasing DNA reports after Wednesday.” On the other hand, Sindh Forensic and DNA Laboratory Karachi University said that samples from 67 victims of the PIA plane crash have been provided by their families.
