Shaheen Air: Burst tyres, fuel leak cause panic, protests
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has fined the private airline for not maintaining its aircraft according to standards.
Express News correspondent Safdar Hussain, also on board flight 742 said that as the plane was taking off, the fuel tank began leaking due to over-fuelling, forcing the pilot to brake.
The 200 passengers on board the flight remained unhurt. They were shifted to the waiting lounge at the airport where they began protesting, demanding that they be flown in another airline.
PIA to remove aircraft from runway
Director General CAA Nadeem Khan Yousafzai has ordered an immediate inquiry on this incident and has requested Pakistan International Airline to remove the aircraft from the runway.
CAA spokesman Pervez George told The Express Tribune that Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar has directed DG CAA to thoroughly check all aircraft of private airlines.
Plane's tyres burst
Earlier today, emergency was declared in an aircraft of Shaheen Air when two of its tyres burst during landing at a runway in Karachi.
According to Express News the plane, with about 100 passengers aboard, was bound to land at the 25-L runway at the Jinnah International Airport when the landing gear malfunctioned, causing the tyre to burst from the pressure.
Embers that sparked from the rims were extinguished with the help of water. All passengers and flight crew remained unhurt in the incident.
According to a CAA spokesperson, the Shaheen Air flight No NL 122 was a Boeing 737.
“The tyre of the wheel landing gear exploded. The plane went forward but then screeched to a halt”, he said.
Fitness checking
Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar has issued notices to all the airlines, grounding all their aircraft for fitness checking. The checking process will begin on April 23.
Aircraft detected with standards lower than the international criterion will be barred from flying. Pilots will also go through similar fitness checking.
However, CAA sources said that all the aircraft would not be grounded at once and one aircraft would undergo fitness checking at a time, while the flight activities will continue as per routine.
Jinnah International re-opens after hours-long closure
After being shut for many hours, one of the major runways at Jinnah International Airport was re-opened for flights.
Following the Karachi incident, the runway was shut down till 08:30pm and larger aircraft were being redirected to a Nawabshah airport, however smaller aircraft continued to land on other runways.
According to earlier reports, the airport runway was scheduled to re-open for traffic by 5pm but the deadline was later extended to 9pm.
These incidents come two days after the Bhoja Air plane crash that took 127 lives on April 20.
COMMENTS (55)
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@Dr. Adnan:
He was landing, not taking off so V1 does not apply. Great that the pilot kept her straight.
A tyre-burst can be dangerous if debris hits the fuel tank and causes a fire. But all were safe so not to worry but coming so soon after the crash of the Bhoja Air everyone is a bit on edge.
I have traveled on Shaheen air planes used for Lahore to Mashad flight. When I was in the plane, passengers were comparing the plane to Niazi bus service.
Authorities involved in maintaining health & well being of Airline industry in Pakistan, must ensure that they are not soft when they issue a document declaring an air craft safe to fly. The final responsibility to ensure safe travel lies with these authorities. The surveying authorities must not compromise any deficiencies, if they do they should have the courage to come forward and share the responsibility. We all do understand and agree that natural disasters are beyond human controls if they appeared to be the cause of an accident. Tyre damage while landing of air crafts has been a repeated practice in recent months. Reliability of landing gears and condition of the runways should be reviewed together to ensure that both of these vital components meet global standards of up keep and do not become the cause of failure of the other. Shaheen Air line is no more owned or affiliated with Pakistan Air Force. Bhoja Air Line have very small portion of share owned by Bhoja family. An ordinary person like me knew the above information. How could highest authorities of Govt. of Pakistan can make this kind of errors. Strange!!!!!!!!!
Shaheen Air line is no more owned or affiliated with Pakistan Air Force. Bhoja Air Line have very small portion of share owned by Bhoja family. An ordinary person like me knew the above information. How could highest authorities of Govt. of Pakistan can make this kind of errors.
@Logic Europe: tell me u r not bilawal
Authorities involved in maintaining health & well being of Airline industry in Pakistan, must ensure that they are not soft when they issue a document declaring an air craft safe to fly. The final responsibility to ensure safe travel lies with these authorities. The surveying authorities must not compromise any deficiencies, if they do they should have the courage to come forward and share the responsibility. We all do understand and agree that natural disasters are beyond human controls if they appeared to be the cause of an accident. Tyre damage while landing of air crafts has been a repeated practice in recent months. Reliability of landing gears and condition of the runways should be reviewed together to ensure that both of these vital components meet global standards of up keep and do not become the cause of failure of the other.
@Kaka:
Are you sure SHAHEEN is owned by the Pakistan military? and CAA is run by the army as well?
Who is there to question the army as to why Air-Blue sold a junk plane to Bhoja and the CAA issued an air-worthy certificate to the 35 plus year old junk?
I was under the impression that army runs the government from behind; now I know the army runs the planes from behind.
@SAB Sohail: "E.T please stop TERRORISING people ! It happens all around the world happened to me on emirates and easy jet !"
There have been 2 plane crashes in 2 years and 2 near misses. .Problems do not occur at such frequency elsewhere. This shows that there are issues with regulations. It is responsible journalism to point out these issues. Sweeping issues under the rug is not a good thing.
Pak govt has monopolised air travel to Pakistan, about time other carriers were allowed to ply there trade for flights to Pakistan,this will increase safety and ticket prices will be reduced plus safety aspect will be enhanced.hopefully one day this will be a reaility,but I fear my idea is just a pipe dream
@ sick of this nonsense Fear not, Imported camels from Australia will be on the way, shortly. It would be a much safer journey, I suppose, apart from it will takes weeks to reach on exact destination.
a burst tire or fuel leak are no big deal..., these things happen from time to time BUT the problem arises when a pattern of negligence begins to emerge -- who owns Shaheen? military. who runs CAA? effectively, the military. point is these guys are not competent enough to set up protocols by which future incidents can be avoided.
Next time someone tells me to be patriotic and fly nation's airlines, I'll slap him.
@amir
Water from the ceiling is simply condensation. That is fairly common annoyance especially on wide body airplanes and in warm or humid climates. It not a safety hazard and nothing to worry about.
Ageing aircrafts with poor maintenance are like flying coffins which need to be grounded before more crashes take place. The biggest delimma in Pakistan is the rotten raliways network and road travel too risky as pointed out by someone leaves no means for poor or even rich to travel from one place to another. The only way for Pakistan to come out of this mess is to reduce the defence expenditure drastically and focus on its economy.
@Mandeep Vaid: Let's avoid making such comments man, we have enough of our own pilots with fake licences and freak accidents in india.
All these troubles show that the country is moving downhill fast. Its ruling elites are in a stupor, borne of their corrupt and inefficient ways. The failing transport infrastructure is symptomatic of deep maladies within. Planes are in a state of disrepair, the Railways are collapsing, road travel is unsafe on several counts. NATO supply trucks have ravaged the highways, so they say. But the president says everything is okay. the Prime Minister is adamant that he prefers to turn a martyr rather than obey the Supreme Court, at the same time doing nothing to control the lawlessness in Karachi and elsewhere. Whither Pakistan?
Guys please stop being stupid, stop listening to all these crappy news. Please visit this website. see how many accidents happen in the world everyday. i understand Bhoja Airlines crash is a very sad loss. but the flying business is a risky one guys. Average age of Airblue aircraft is not more than 4 to 5 years. They are brand new aircraft almost. So stop defamin everyone. Yes all the investigations must be done and actions must be taken. But flying is what it is. We can only ensure to keep it as safe as possible, that is it.
http://aviation-safety.net/index.php
please do visit this and tyre bursts and fuel leak is an everyday routine in flying. thats how it is. live with it or donot go near an aircraft.
Airbus380 was grounded for a while twice as it had some problems, so old or new my friends weather doesnt really see what type of aircraft is operating.
an advice to all my fellow pilots : DONOT PLAY WITH WEATHER. diversion is the best option. Finals : weather these thing donot go together. praise to the Shaheen Air pilots who controlled the tyre burst in a professional manner.
Happy Landings to all of us. and prayers for all who have suffered an unbearable loss. May Allah be with all of us.
And all these Indian friends. No Fake licenses in Pakistan Atleast, Thank god.
Corrupt Leaders Corrupt Government Corrupt Institutions Corrupt Nation Corrupt Quom Results evident .... this is no rocket science !!!!
Wake up, CAA!
Leak in the fuel tank as seen in the news and that is below the main tank is indicative of corrosion and inadequate maintenance. If this is 737-200 then it is a matter of time before it will have the same fate as Bhoja Airline. As the plane gets older it requires extensive more maintenance and very high unscheduled maintenance which results in sky-rocketing cost. So most of the profitable airline operators discard or sell it off to country such as Pakistan. But they must understand the risk i.e. heavy maintenance which in case of Pakistani is not that important.
Bhoja air, Air blue, Shaheen air and PIA, Pakistan Railways all are showing signs of infrastructure fatigue due to poor economic condition of the country. It is also a sign of corporate and societal culture that everything will be OK god or government will take care of it. This prevents everyone from taking painful decisions. There is a parallel between Pakistan and US economy both are getting dragged by chronic two wars. In case of US it is Iraq and Afghanistan whereas for Pakistan it is Kashmir and Afghanistan. Interestingly both want China to help. China will help US and than US will help Pakistan.
It is a shame .everyone seems to be somehow blaming the government people wake up ye whole nation is corrupt and uncaring, loke Christians believe Christ was crucified to forgive their sins,you think that blaming Zardariv will absolve you of your responsibilities well as far as govt is concerned ,zia could not gaurantee his own safety Look at the buses and cars in your cities,just rusting pieces of metal All are responsible
With allahs grace nothing too bad happened
But why oh why does it take so long to clear the runway. Incompetent lot
the investigation findings of all the previous incidents should be made public to avoid such tragedies in future.
Shaheen is the cause of all this. As you are aware they are the ones who sold the plane to Bhoja. They must be stopped.
I am still here at Jinnah Airport, i was supposed to be on the 1210 EK 601 enroute to London via Dubai, even the 7 pm stand off is uncertain
Now, who with a sound mind will fly in these rotten airplanes?
@Khan:
That's why Allah is angry on us.
Due to bad governance, we are facing problems everywhere in Pakistan. PPP failed to promote merit which is the major cause of problems in Pakistan. All Parchi and Sifarashi appointments are already showing signs of mismanagement. The image of Pakistan is going worse than ever.
lol it was not fuel leak..just fuel overflow.. Express please giving fake news!!
Neverthless, all airlines whether private or PIA should be thoroughly checked and regulations be made strict to avoid future incidents!
@sick of this nonsense: CAA is to be blamed for this mate. They don’t have good instruments and tools to run airport systems, they lack good human resources, as their people have migrated to greener and safer pastures than living in Pakistan. Such accidents are unfortunately bound to happen here, especially in a country where mediocrity and uneducated become administrators of such important and prestigious institutions. Airblue, PIA, Bhojas and now Shaheen getting closer to an accident. France shut down the Concord flights just after one plane crash. I think the best in Pakistan is to travel in cars, with enough weapons to defend yourself if need be.
Government and the opposition are so much busy settling their scores that they have forgot the actual purpose of their being the politician. These events not just showing our bad image to the world - that how much competent we are.
OMG, I thought Bangla airplanes were bad, but Pakistan planes are worse.
We are facing the outcome of our own deeds.
@Pragmatist:
Has nothing to do with what you just said ... Its all down to corruption and nepotism everywhere... Jobs are available only with bribes .. and no one is professional in such scenario .. every one's aim is to earn money somehow .. no one cares if their actions are hurting any one.
I no longer trust CAA to do its job effectively. It's time to bring in foreign safety consultants.
I think in many airports, the planes from Pakistan are banned for safety concern in Europe. We thought its a conspiracy but i think they were right afterall. If planes or sometimes tyres or fuel tanks keep bursting, how to travel? Trains are useless with massive delays, buses are extremely risky because of militancy, cities have become very dangerous, how to travel? Personal Safety has become a major issue.
@Kapil Dev: ET should be appreciated for their honesty. Why does it hurt you if they disclose the name of the airline? Your 'suggestion' is ridiculous.
@SAB Sohail: ET is just reporting whats happening on daily basis ..
I hope you're not linked to Roy Sullivan (was hit by lighting 7 times). London Heathrow Airport, is one of the busiest airport in the world handling around 500,000 flights per year .. has five terminals and each runway handling one take off every minute. Despite handling such huge traffic last recorded crash was in 1972 in which loss of life happened. In last 15 years only two incidents happened in which passengers were hurt. This is due to sheer dedication and professionalism where emphasize is given to passenger's safety and priority isn't profit or buying cheap old aircraft to safe few bucks. IMO, ban all private Pakistani jets .. they can invest in railways instead.
Why are we not reporting similar incidence on PIA. On March 10, 2012, from 0800 am flight I went to Lahore on their old B-747. As soon as the plane took off, water started seeping from the ceiling. I was in the middle aisle so was not affected. People on the right side were all drenched. The senior pursuer, with a tissue box in his hand was wiping the celing. None of the flight cockpit came down to look what was happening. It was business as usual for them.
the conditions of pakistani aeroplanes resembles the junk wagons and buses functioning with defected gas cylinders every second day exploding and killing people. And the pilots with fake liciences as common in Pakistan???
Pakistan wake up!!! God is sending a warning.
How come CAA had not grounded all planes of Bhoja after the Islamabad incident.. After all the entire fleet was Bhoja was all junk planes totalling 5 not 500.
Where is CAA?? In Pakistan, nobody learn lessons. It's money that everyone listens to. CAA directors doesn't care about people lives. On the part of government it's a failure again. The state has no concern, whatsoever, for it's people.
It is good to report the events or incidents. But I think rather using the name of company Shaheen Airline, it should have been Private Airline.
Allah is very angry with Pakistan for some reason. I can only guess what they might be.
All these incidents show the incompetency and corruption in CAA. Obsolete planes are allowed to fly risking the lives of 100s of passengers. I don't want to blame anyone, but it's clear to even to a layman like me, that the CAA are either trying to help their cronies or are giving clean chits to grounded aircrafts in exchange of 'gifts'.
The government should wake up and take notice of these accidents as innocent lives are on stake here.
On a side note, my heart goes out to the families of the deceased passengers in the recent Bhoja Air crash. May Allah bless the souls of the deceased and give their families the strength to go through this difficult time. Ameen.
Flying Coffins! PIA much ahead than others since they recite Koranic verses also! My humble suggestion that before landing also there should be Koranic verses recited on PA system on all Pakistani based airlines.
When their is no law and order when their is no check and balance then these type of miss hipping will be the part of the groups,We are not society we are group of people like 1st,2nd 3rd and business low business lowest business class people are living then every body has their on race,control and rights.If we should published the air blue report then three days before Bhoja Air Line will not be the crashed now please be open your eyes,your mind and ears to do something change other wise govt actors and non govt actors will not taking care of us.
Ya ALLAH RAHEM...
Wow amazing work by the Airline Pilot because it becomes super hard if the plane reaches V1 near rotation. Kudos to the quick response of Pilot but SLAP to the AIRLINE.
trains are ten hours or so late, planes have become very unsafe, driving by car too is risky due to conditions in the country how in Gods name are we going to travel? Alladin's magic carpet?
what is this????????????????????????????? Govenment should take the necessary steps????????????