Accident Overview
On 22 May 2020 at 13:05 Pakistan Standard Time, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK8303, an Airbus A320-214 registered as AP-BLD, crashed in a populated area short of runway 25L at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi. The aircraft carried 99 occupants, of whom 97 sustained fatal injuries.
Investigation Progress
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) of Pakistan is conducting the safety investigation in accordance with ICAO Annex 13. Technical support has been provided by the Bureau of Enquiries and Analysis (BEA) of France, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) of the USA, and their advisors: the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Airbus, Safran Engines, and General Electric (GE).
Activities have included collaboration through meetings, teleconferences, document exchanges, and field visits. The AAIB visited Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and PIA to gather evidence related to various domains. Detailed appendices list contribution reports from accredited representatives and technical advisors, covering areas such as on-site observations, engine examination, flight path trajectory, CCTV video transcription, crash site and wreckage analysis, preliminary sound and warnings chronology, Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) transcription, Flight Data Recorder (FDR) analysis, and operational performance.
Ongoing Evaluation
Further analysis of collected information and contribution reports is underway to formulate conclusions and safety recommendations. Supplementary field visits are planned, and flight simulation sessions at the original equipment manufacturer’s facility are being considered to evaluate crew actions, subject to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Future Steps
After the investigation concludes, a draft final report will be prepared and shared with member states for review and comment, as required by ICAO Annex 13. Once comments are reconciled, the final report will be forwarded to the Government of Pakistan for approval and public release.