Investigation into deadly Pakistan plane crash points to pilot error

Landing gear ‘wasn’t deployed when the Airbus SE A320 jet touched the runway’

Investigators have zeroed in on pilot error as one of the primary reasons — if not the only cause — why a Pakistan International Airlines Corp. plane crashed into a Karachi neighbourhood last month, killing all but two of the 99 people on board, people with knowledge of the matter said.

It appears the landing gear wasn’t deployed when the Airbus SE A320 jet touched the runway in its first approach, and there was no communication from the cockpit on whether the aircraft was trying to land on its belly, the people said, asking not to be identified because details of the probe are confidential. Both PIA and the plane maker are pushing for an initial report to be made public as soon as possible, so that mechanical failure can be ruled out, they said. Such an outcome would largely clear Airbus and engine maker CFM, a joint venture between General Electric Co. and France’s Safran SA, of any significant contribution to the tragedy.

Maintenance mistakes

While finding pilot error would absolve PIA of maintenance or mechanical mistakes, it would also shove pilot training and procedures into the spotlight as the airline takes to the skies after a twomonth lockdown. France’s air safety investigator, the Bureau d’Enquetes et d’Analyses, successfully downloaded the jet’s flight data and cockpit voice recordings this week, which will help investigators understand what went on inside the plane as it hit the runway midway with the wheels still up, grinding along on its two engines at a speed of more than 322km/h.