KARACHI: A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight from Islamabad to Medina made an emergency landing at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi after developing a technical fault, an airline spokesperson said.
Flight PK-713 was flying to Medina when the crew detected the issue while the aircraft was in UAE airspace.
The captain decided to divert the Boeing 777 to Karachi as a precaution, the spokesperson said.
More than 300 passengers were on board the aircraft, excluding the crew. The flight had been airborne for more than three hours when the technical problem emerged.
The captain turned the aircraft around and headed back to Karachi. The plane landed safely at Jinnah International Airport.
Airport authorities later moved the passengers to the transit lounge.
Similar Incident Reported in July
The incident follows a similar case on July 31, when a foreign airline flight bound for Abu Dhabi returned to Karachi after developing an engine-related technical fault shortly after takeoff.
The Airbus A320 had 128 passengers on board when one of its engines developed a technical problem.
The captain alerted air traffic control (ATC) and requested permission to make a precautionary landing.
After receiving clearance, the captain turned the aircraft back to Karachi and landed safely at Jinnah International Airport without incident.
