People gathered near the debris of a crashed plane on the outskirts of Rawalpindi, adjacent city to Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 20, 2012. A passenger plane crashed near Islamabad Friday evening, killing all 127 people on board, the Pakistani aviation authorities and Defence Ministry said. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)
ISLAMABAD, April 20 (Xinhua) -- A passenger plane carrying 127 passengers and crew members crashed near Islamabad of Pakistan Friday evening, the Pakistani aviation authorities and Defence Ministry said.
Officials said that the plane of a private company came down a few kilometers away from Islamabad. Police at the site said there were no chance of survivors.
The plane crashed on houses, causing fire on them. The plane was carrying 118 passengers and a crew of 9, and it belonged to the Bhoja Airlines, officials said.
The plane B4-213 was coming from the port city of Karachi to Islamabad. It crashed while landing at the Islamabad's Benazir Bhutto International Airport.
The Bhoja Airlines also confirmed the incident and its officials said that the plane was scheduled to land at the Islamabad airport at 6:45 p.m. local time. The plane left the Karachi airport at 5 p.m..
The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authorities said that the crash was apparently due to bad weather. The crash happened when Islamabad was receiving heavy rain. The plane crashed about 10 to 20 kilometers away from the Islamabad airport, they said.
Witnesses said that flame could be seen rising from the crash site and fire has reportedly engulfed several buildings.
Rescue teams and ambulances rushed to the site and emergency was declared in hospitals of Islamabad and the nearby Rawalpindi city.
Burning wreckage of the fuselage, wings and engines was scattered in the populated area and twisted metal parts hung from trees, an eyewitness said. "I saw bodies lying in the area," he told reporters.
Pakistani Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar ordered an inquiry into the crash.
ISLAMABAD, April 20 (Xinhua) --A black box flight recorder from a Pakistani private airlines plane, that crashed near Islamabad international airport Friday evening, killing 127 people on board, has been recovered by search teams, officials said. Full story
ISLAMABAD, April 20 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistani aviation authorities and rescuers say there is no hope of survivors from a passenger plane that crashed near Islamabad with 127 people on board Friday evening. Full story
