Plane takes a nosedive to destruction

A trainer, two-seat aircraft of a private flying club crashed into the porch of a house located in H Block, Model Town, killing both the trainee and the trainer on Thursday. The aircraft, a Cessna 150, belonged to Hybrid Flying Club located near PAF Colony, Centre Point. According to aviation officials, the plane had taken off from the club at 2pm and had crashed in a house numbered 143-H in Model Town. The aircraft was a training aircraft which was being flown by two people, Anita and Waqar. Anita Quraishi, 28, was training Waqar, 23. Fortunately the plane did not crash into the house and came down nose first into the porch.
Witnesses said the same plane flew over the area every day. Abdul Karim, who lives right across the house, saw the entire episode unfold. “It was 2:15pm and this plane was flying by as usual,” he said, adding “the engine of the plane suddenly went quiet and it started spinning and came down, nose first, in the house’s garage.” “The crash was not that loud,” he said, adding “the petrol started leaking and it flowed out onto the street.” “There was no fire. Rescue 1122 was called immediately,” said Aslam, a gardener of the same lane said. “Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the Model Town security chief reached the scene immediately,” the gardener said. According to experts, the Cessnas have a training route and a specific point from where the pilots report to the flying club. “The pilot, Anita, had reported their location when they were crossing over the Model Town Park, after that no message was received from them,” an official of the club asking not be named said. While answering a question, the official said the conversations between the pilot and the control tower were not recorded. According to Rescue 1122 officials, the pilots were killed at the moment of impact. “Their bodies were sawed out of the debris. Both of the passengers belonged to Karachi and were the member of Hybird Flying Club,” he said. The police said the crime scene had been sealed and all evidences had been collected. “We are waiting for the aviation expert team to arrive from Karachi and investigate the crash, anything said before the investigation would be immature”, said Model SP Maroof Wala.

The aircraft that had crashed inside a house in Model Town on Thursday was out of fuel, an aviation industry expert asking not be named told Pakistan Today. The expert said the aircraft had taken a nosedive because its fuel tank was empty due to unknown reasons. He further stated, “It is very strange that the aircraft did not even catch fire.” Residents of 143-H, Model Town, Mubasher Hussain and Umar Hussain, also confirmed that the aircraft had not caught fire and no fuel had leaked.
Another witness, Raza, also expressed similar observations. He also mentioned that aircraft engines were off and it was moving like a spiral when it hit the ground. However, speaking to Pakistan Today, Hybrid Aviation Managing Director Mohsin Syed claimed that the aircraft was 100 percent fit for flying, but the unfortunate incident was the result of the mistake of the trainee pilot. He said the aircraft strolled and went into a nosedive, which clearly indicated that something seriously went wrong with the plane. “The aircraft was capable to glide and land safely in any emergency situation,” he maintained.
“Though it is really unfortunate that two precious lives were lost, but it is part of flying training. Similar incidents have happened many times before, even various aircraft of Pakistan Air Force have crashed during training,” he underscored. Responding to a question, Syed said it was Cessna 150 aircraft (registration AP-BCS) that was manufactured in 1969 or 1971. It was upgraded and well maintained in all respects, he added. Meanwhile, a six-member Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) team headed by Security and Safety Department Head Abdul Majid reached the scene and inspected the debris. The members left the scene immediately and did not talk to the reporters. They said the plane’s debris would be removed today (Friday).
A CAA official said it would be premature to give a reason without proper investigation and the report would be made public.Answering a question, he said all aviation companies and flying clubs in the country were strictly regulated. CAA officials conducted through inspecion of all aircraft operating in the country and issued fitness certificates in routine, he underscored. On the other hand, Special Branch of the Lahore Police sealed the office of the private flying company, Hybrid Aviation. Police sources said even though it was the job of the CAA, but for the protection of records, the police had taken this action.
They said police had sealed all office records and had parked all aircraft that belonged to the flying company in hangers in their presence. However, Hybrid Aviation MD Mohsin Syed claimed that his office had not been sealed. According to the Hybrid Aviation website, “Hybrid’s Cessna 150 (AP-BCS) has been recently refurbished by Hybrid Aviation engineers and added into the fleet.
The Cessna 150 isn’t very fast or big, but it’s not expensive to fly and it’s fun. Much of flying is about fun and the C150 gives the most value for money for any student pilot. It is a wonderful training aircraft and many students learn a lot from its flying. That is the reason why Hybrid uses it solely for training purposes at Hybrid Flying School.” The website indicates that the two-seater aircraft had single engine and was equipped with a VOR and ILS systems.