The Pakistan Airports Authority said a search and rescue operation was underway in the Arabian Sea after a cargo plane carrying five crew members went missing off the coast of Karachi.
The Boeing 737 operated by K2 Airways, a private cargo airline in Karachi, was flying from Sharjah in the UAE to Karachi when it reported a “navigation system issue” at 9.18pm local time on Tuesday.
Three minutes later, the aircraft made a sharp heading change and started a rapid descent. It soon lost radar and radio contact.
The plane was about 287km west of Karachi when it disappeared, the authority said.
In a statement, K2 confirmed the plane was carrying five people. “We continue to pray, earnestly, for the safety of our colleagues,” it said.
The airline further said it was “fully cooperating with the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority and other government agencies”.
Authorities named the pilots as Captain Rizwan Idrees and First Officer Faisal Jatoi but didn’t identify the other crew members.
They said a search and rescue operation, involving the naval frigate PNS Zulfiquar as well as maritime patrol and air force aircraft, was underway.
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According to the tracking service Flightradar24, the aircraft “indicated a loss of altitude, followed by a climb, and then a second, sudden and dramatic loss of altitude”. The last transmitted data showed it at 1,100ft above sea level, descending at a rate of 22,400 feet per minute, an extremely steep and highly unusual rate of descent.
Flightradar24 said early flight data indicated “a possible crash in the sea southwest of Karachi”.
“Anytime you see something extreme like that, it catches your eye, but it’s too soon to say what any of it means without more information,” Anthony Brickhouse, an aerospace safety consultant, told Reuters.
Pakistan International Airlines, the country’s flag carrier, expressed sorrow over the “tragic news of the K2 Airways cargo flight going down in the Arabian Sea”.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the five crew members on board and their families. We hope for a swift and successful search and rescue operation, and have offered all possible support in this regard,” the airline said.
“Gratitude to the navy, air force and other shipping assets in the area participating in the operation.”
The missing aircraft was a Boeing 737-200, an early model in the American manufacturer’s 737 family that first entered service in the late 1960s. It’s two generations older than the 737 MAX, the latest version of the plane which remains grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes that sparked a major safety crisis and sweeping design and regulatory changes.
