Air Blue Flight ABQ-202 Crash at Islamabad (AP-BJB)

Accident Overview and Investigation Authority On 28 July 2010, Air Blue Flight ABQ-202, an Airbus A321-231-A5 with registration AP-BJB, crashed into the Margalla Hills near Islamabad, Pakistan. The aircraft was operating a domestic flight from Karachi to Islamabad and carried 152 people, including six crew members. The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (Safety Investigation Board) conducted the investigation under Rule 273 of the Civil Aviation Rules, 1994, as the State of Occurrence and State of Registry. The report was completed and submitted to the Director General Civil Aviation Authority on 07 March 2011. ## Aircraft and Crew Details The aircraft, manufactured on 14 April 2000 and inducted into service on 05 February 2006, was powered by two V2533 engines with a thrust rating of 33K. At the time of the crash, the aircraft had accumulated 34,018 flight hours and 13,566 flight cycles. A daily inspection was carried out on 28 July 2010 prior to the flight, and no defects were recorded. The aircraft was deemed airworthy. The flight crew consisted of a Captain and a First Officer, both Pakistani nationals. The Captain, aged 61 years and 7 months, held an Airline Transport Pilot License (ATPL) valid until 31 March 2011 and had a total flying experience of 25,497 hours, including 1,060 hours on the Airbus A320. The First Officer, aged 34 years and 11 months, held a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) valid until 28 February 2011 and had a total flying experience of 1,837 hours, including 286 hours on the Airbus A320. Both crew members were medically fit and adequately experienced for the flight. ## Flight Sequence and Crash The aircraft took off from Karachi at 0241 UTC (0741 PST) for Islamabad. At 0441:08 UTC, while executing a circling approach for Runway 12 at Islamabad, the aircraft flew into the Margalla Hills. The crash site was located at a distance of 9.6 nautical miles on a radial 334 from the Islamabad VOR. The aircraft was completely destroyed, and all 152 people on board sustained fatal injuries. ## Safety Features and Systems The aircraft was equipped with a Flight Management and Guidance System (FMGS), which included two Multifunction Control and Display Units (MCDU), two Flight Management Guidance Computers (FMGC), one Flight Control Unit (FCU), and two Flight Augmentation Computers (FAC). The FMGCs were manufactured by Honeywell and used a navigation database with part number ED11007.001, valid from 1 to 28 July 2010. The system provided both managed and selected guidance modes, allowing the flight crew to control the aircraft's lateral and vertical trajectories. ## Investigation Objective The sole objective of the investigation was the prevention of accidents and incidents, not to apportion blame or liability. Accredited representatives from BEA-France (Airbus), NTSB-USA (IAE), and BFU-Germany (IAE) were involved in the investigation in accordance with ICAO Annex 13 Chapter 5.