A search operation is under way off the coast of Karachi after a cargo plane carrying five crew members disappeared Tuesday night, Pakistan’s airport authority said.
The Boeing 737, operated by Karachi-based private carrier K2 Airways, lost contact with air traffic controllers at 21:21 local time (16:21 GMT).
The aircraft had been flying from Sharjah in the UAE and reported a navigation system fault minutes before it began a steep descent. Flight-tracking platform Flightradar24 recorded a sharp altitude fluctuation before the plane dropped off radar.
Pakistan’s navy and air force have been deployed as part of the search effort, the airport authority said.
K2 Airways, founded in 2018, identified all five crew members in a statement on Wednesday and said it was “fully cooperating with the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority and other government agencies.”
“We continue to pray, earnestly, for the safety of our colleagues,” the company added.
The last major aviation incident in Pakistan was in May 2020, when a Pakistan International Airlines flight crashed while approaching Karachi airport, killing 97 of the 99 people on board.
