Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 — domestic passenger flight crash near Karachi, Pakistan on 22 May 2020
One of Pakistan's deadliest aviation accidents, killing 97 of 99 aboard plus one on the ground due to crew errors and an unstable approach.
Key Facts
- Total fatalities
- 98 (97 on board + 1 on ground)
- Survivors
- 2 passengers
- Aircraft type
- Airbus A320
- People on board
- 99 (91 passengers, 8 crew)
- Crash site distance from runway
- 4,410 ft (1,340 m) from threshold
- Route
- Lahore to Karachi (domestic)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The flight crew of PIA Flight 8303 flew an unstable approach to Jinnah International Airport at excessive airspeed and altitude, ignoring air traffic control instructions. Poor crew resource management, failure to follow standard operating procedures, and the first officer raising landing gear without verbalizing it caused the aircraft to belly-land partway down the runway, severely damaging both engines.
On 22 May 2020, the Airbus A320 operating Flight 8303 belly-landed mid-runway at Karachi, then attempted a go-around. With both engines failing from damage sustained during the belly landing, the aircraft could not gain sufficient altitude to return to the runway and crashed into residential buildings in Model Colony, approximately 4,410 ft short of the runway threshold.
Ninety-seven of the 99 people on board were killed, along with one ground fatality who died ten days later from burn injuries. Pakistan's Aircraft Accident Investigation Board attributed the crash to crew error. The disaster prompted renewed scrutiny of pilot licensing in Pakistan, with authorities subsequently suspending or revoking the licenses of numerous pilots found to hold fraudulent or improperly obtained qualifications.