Islamabad crash plane had no technical fault: Airblue CEO

ISLAMABAD - Airblue Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said that the company’s plane which crashed into the Margalla hills near Islamabad on Wednesday had no technical fault.

Abbasi said that the plane had only completed 34,000 flying hours, which is normal for such an aircraft.

He also ruled out the pilot’s negligence, saying that Captain Pervaiz had more than 25,000 flying hours of experience, while Flying Officer Muntabajib Chughtai had served in the Pakistan Air Force as a F-16 jet fighter pilot, and had 1,700 flying hours of experience.

He further said that the factors behind the crash would only be clear once a complete report has been received and the black box is recovered.

“At the time of the crash, the plane was flying at a height of 1,000 feet. The wreckage is spread far and wide and the black box has not been found until now,” The News quoted Abbasi, as saying. he plane, which took off at 7.50 a.m. from Karachi to Islamabad, was carrying 152 people, including six crewmembers.

At least 102 of those killed in the crash have been identified, and handed over to the families.

The pilot was reportedly trying to land at Islamabad on schedule at 9.30 a.m., but was told to wait as the airport was busy.

The Pakistan government has formed two separate investigation teams to determine the actual cause of the crash. (ANI)