France Airbus experts begin probe into PIA plane crash in Karachi
An 11-member team of technical experts of Airbus aerospace company visited the Jinnah International Airport here and inspected the runway, air traffic control tower and radar control station as part of its initial investigation into the PIA air crash involving its aircraft that killed 97 people, according to media reports.The team of experts from an Airbus facility in the French city of Toulouse reached Pakistan on Monday to carry out an independent probe into Friday’s mishap.
The crash involved the Netherlands-headquartered international aerospace company’s Airbus A-320, which plunged into a residential area minutes before landing reportedly due to engine failure.The team inspected the runway of the Jinnah International Airport here, where the plane made a failed attempt to land before going up and crashing in a nearby residential area, The Express Tribune reported.They also visited the air traffic control tower and the radar control station.
The team will also inspect the mishap site where the national flag carrier’s flight PK-8303 from Lahore crash landed, the report said.The experts will also provide technical assistance to their Pakistani counterparts to investigate the reasons behind the crash, one of the worst in the country’s aviation history in recent times.The experts are expected to take the aircraft’s black box recorder which contains the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder and any other evidence that would help with the investigation, the report said.
The team will fly back to France after completing the 16-hour investigation, the report said.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan aviation authorities on Tuesday said that they have shared the findings of their initial investigation into the crash with the Airbus team.
