Yesterday morning 47 people on board a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight that crashed near Abbottabad were killed, the airline said.
“We were confident that the plane could land with one working engine,” Saigol said. “This is a tragedy. We are not absolving ourselves of any connection
to this incident.”
Saigol said it’s “highly unlikely that this was a terrorist attack.” He added that the bodies of the victims would be transferred to hospitals in Islamabad
at 12:30 p.m. local time.
500,000 rupees ($5,000) cash will be given to the next of kin of the 47 victims to meet expenses, according to a statement
released by PIA Thursday.
The airline clarified that all 42 passengers and 5 crew members were killed instantly as the plane erupted in flames on landing, after the plane
lost communication wit a control tower on it’s way from Chitral to Islamabad. The plane crashed high in the mountains of Abbotabad and Havelian
killing a famous former pop star who became a religious cleric named Junaid Jamshed.
Jamshed soared to fame in the 1980s with Vital Signs, one of the most iconic pop bands in Pakistan. After a successful career as a solo singer
in the 1990s, Jamshed gave up pop stardom to focus on religious music, or nasheeds.
Image of Junaid Jamshed Pakistan’s Robbie Williams.
Two infants were among the passengers, according to a passenger manifest published by Pakistan International Airlines. Meanwhile Pakistan’s National
Disaster Management Authority have retrieved 46 of the 47 bodies of those killed in the crash.
Evidence of an engine fault in the left engine of the plane has emerged and families who have lost loved ones are seeking a government enquiry
into the deaths of those they have lost.
One of the victims was Khawar Sohail a Young Christian man of 28 years who worked a Regional Manager at International Khurdish Artist Network (IKAN)
within their engineering service. His father a retired army officer Mr Kadim Masih had five children of which Khawar was the fourth child. Mr Sohail’s
family lived in Green Town, Lahore and had been the family’s main bread-winner for a good number of years.
Mr Sohail attended Grace Assemblies of God Church in Lahore who have saying prayers for him and his family since news broke out about his death.
He was a very active member of his church and helped with organising Christmas and Easter functions and it was hoped that he would marry
quite soon.
The family of Mr Sohail have been informed that Mr Sohail’s body will be identified within 4-5 days. Our BPCA officer Naveed has visited the family
with a bouquet of flowers today. He has shared condolences with the family and is hoping to provide help and assistance where he can during
their moment of grief and loss.
Sohail Khawar’s Mother Nusrat Masih and Father Khadim Masih receive flowers from BPCA officer Naveed Aziz.
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association, said:
“Nothing can console people of the pain that death causes except the knowledge of a place in heaven. When lives are taken under such sudden circumstances through no fault of the victims it is a devastating blow to one’s morale. We call on people to pray for succour for those who have lost family members and in particular to lift up the family of Khawar Sohail who will now have to start a new journey in life without their main bread-winner.”
If you would like to provide a gift to the family of Mr Sohail as they start to cope with the loss of a main bread-winner you can do so by clicking (here)