GILGIT: An ATR plane of Pakistan International Airline (PIA) over shot the runway while attempting to land here at Gilgit airport on Saturday.
All passengers remained safe in the incident, the airline’s spokesperson, Mashhood Tajwar, said in a statement.
He said the pilot, later identified as Captain Maryam, skillfully regained control of the plane after the ATR-42 aircraft “slid off to the unpaved [area] to a minor extent during landing”.
However, a source in the aviation industry told Pakistan Today that the accident had resulted due to a judgement error of the pilot.
“If the aircraft had touched down for landing at the recommended beginning portion of the runway, there is no way the aircraft could have gone beyond the runway unless the brakes totally failed,” said the source.
The flight PK-605 was carrying 53 people, including crew members, from Islamabad to Gilgit, according to the Gilgit deputy commissioner. The aircraft was pictured resting on its right side after coming to a halt in a grassy area next to the tarmac.
The runway at Gilgit airport was temporarily closed after the incident. When it reopened, PIA’s return flight PK-608 took off for Islamabad.
PIA CEO Air Marshal Arshad Malik ordered a “transparent inquiry” into the incident, the spokesperson said.
He added that action would be taken as per aviation rules if any negligence is proven during the investigation.
The two pilots of the flight involved in the incident have been grounded till the completion of the probe, Tajwar revealed.
