The Queen has sent a message of support to the President of Pakistan, Dr Arif Alvi, following Friday’s devastating plane crash.
The Queen’s message reads:
“Prince Philip and I have been saddened by the news of the plane crash near Karachi on Friday.
“We send our most sincere condolences to you, the families and friends of those who have died, and to the Pakistani people, particularly at this time of Eid.”
Friday’s plane crash occurred when an Airbus A320, which had been flying from Lahore to Karachi, crashed into a crowded residential district in the city after trying to land back at the airport twice.
There were 99 passengers on board and the death toll has reached at least 97. The black box from the aeroplane was recovered on Saturday. Investigators hope it will provide insight into the cause of the crash.
Two male passengers are the lone survivors of the crash and are being treated in hospital.
“After it hit and I regained consciousness, I saw fire everywhere and no one was visible,” Mohammad Zubair said from his hospital bed. “The cries were everywhere and everybody was trying to survive. I undid my seat belt and I saw some light and tried to walk towards it. Then I jumped out.”
According to Pakistan International Airlines chief, Arshad Malik, the pilot had been communicating with air traffic controllers shortly before the crash and said that he had lost power to both engines.
“The last words we heard from our pilot were that there is a technical problem and he was told on final approach that he has both runways available to him to land on. But the pilot decided that he wanted to go around,” Malik said to reporters.
The plane then quickly lost altitude and crashed into a nearby residential town called Model Colony.
This is the worst aeroplane accident in Pakistan since 2012’s Bhoja Air crash resulted in 127 deaths after the plane came down in Islamabad.