New Delhi: A Delhi-Doha-bound Qatar Airways flight made an emergency landing in Pakistan’s southern city of Karachi early Monday due to a “technical snag”. Officials gave this information. Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesperson Saifur Rehman confirmed that Qatar Airways flight QR-579 landed safely at Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport. Within hours, all 283 passengers were taken to Doha on an alternate flight sent by the airline.
Rahman said a Qatar Airways QR579 bound Doha flight took off from New Delhi at 3.20 am (Indian time) and made an emergency landing in Karachi at around 5.30 am. “The captain declared a state of emergency after smoke was detected in the cargo hold of the aircraft,” Rahman said. The crew members and passengers of the plane disembarked and were provided emergency services at Jinnah International Airport and were taken off by another flight, he said.
He added that the pilot requested an emergency landing and the control tower and CAA personnel responded promptly considering the nature of the problem. Earlier, the airline had said in a statement that the plane landed safely in Karachi and all passengers were de-boarded through stairs. The company said the investigation into the incident was underway and relief flights were being arranged to take the passengers to Doha.
The airline said, “We apologize for the inconvenience caused to our passengers, they will be assisted for onward journey.” Qatar Airways said, “On March 21, a state of emergency was declared after smoke signaled from the cargo hold of flight QR 579 from Delhi to Doha and it was landed safely in Karachi.” A CAA spokesperson said, “All flight operations are now normal at Jinnah International Airport. The aircraft which had a technical issue is now being inspected at the airport.”
