Breakdown of an army plane in Rawalpindi has cast a dark shadow over the country. In pursuant to emergency services Rescue 1122, 18 people lost their lives in the crash and 12 civilians were injured in the crash as the aircraft smashed into houses below where most of the people were sleeping at the time. Five military officials were among deceased .The incident happened at around 2am in Mora Kalu, a poverty stricken village in Rawalpindi close to the upscale Bahria Town housing society. The Beechcraft King Air 350 turboprop aircraft belonging to Army Aviation was on a usual training flight. Several residents said that they could see the aircraft on fire while it flew over their village before crashing. It was flying unusually low over the area. Several houses destroyed by the debris of the aircraft. Emergency services Rescue 1122 said the bodies had been shifted to the Combined Military Hospital as they were burnt beyond acknowledgement and required DNA tests for detection. Hearts touching scenes were observed at the site as rescue workers removed the burned bodies and transferred the injured to the hospital. The area was right away cordoned off by law enforcement agencies to make it easier rescue work and collect accident-related proof. Army helicopters were seen flying over the area shortly after the crash. The crash is said to have been caused due to a technical malfunctions as one of the engines of the aircraft stopped working. Prime Minister Imran Khan in a statement expressed his condolences over the loss of life in the air crash. Later the federal cabinet, at the start of its meeting, offered fateha for the departed souls. A senior police official said a report on the incident had been recorded in the roznamcha. He said they will examine the incident after the registration of FIR, if the police are directed to do so. Rawalpindi has seen a number of fatal air crashes. These include August 1970 PIA Fokker crash during take-off; PIA Fokker crash in December 1972, July 2010 Air Blue A-321 crash in the Margalla hills and April 2012 Boeing 737 crash. One of the recent big air accidents comprising Army Aviation has been that of a Mi-17 in August 2015 in which 12 army men were martyred. The helicopter was on a medical evacuation mission to Gilgit when it crashed near Mansehra. In May 2015, another helicopter had crashed in Naltar while taking diplomats there for inauguration of ski chairlift. The helicopter had then crashed into an empty school leaving all seven on board including ambassadors of Norway and Philippines and wives of two other foreign ambassadors. President Arif Alvi and Prime me Minister Imran Khan have voiced pain and grief over the loss of costly lives in Rawalpindi aircraft crash. In affirmation issued from their respective offices, they grieved with the bereaved families and prayed for recuperation of those wounded in the incident.
Many others are battling for their lives in hospitals after suffering grave injuries in the accident, comprising burns that are most hard to handle. First investigation indicated a technical fault as the reason of the crash. One of the engines of the plane seemed halted working; this will involve a decorum through which all aircraft belonging to the same fleet will go through examination before they are free for flying. The loss of lives on the ground, including those of women and children, as well as the severe injuries caused by the crash, is exceedingly painful. It also raises the question of the probability of an even greater tragedy had the crash occurred in a more thickly populated area of the city. In addition to discussion on the points more directly related to this particular incident the incident is going to arouse debate on many views of general aviation safety. Among them are the views of maintaining a safe distance between populated areas and flying zones used by all kinds of aircraft. There has been just very heavy an increase in recent times in overhead traffic in densely populated, often badly planned urban areas. The matter has to be seen at closely and on an immediate basis. Rawalpindi Corps Commander Lt Gen Bilal Akbar also visited the crash site to monitor the rescue operation. Military officials had cordoned the site while a crowd of residents stood nearby, some of them weeping. Pakistan has acclaimed aviation safety record, with often plane crashes over the years. However, crashes involving military aircraft are unusual. Pakistan’s military has been on highest vigilant since February when India launched an air attack inside Pakistan, saying it was going after fighters who were responsible for the suicide bombing that killed 40 Indian troops in Indian- held Kashmir. Pakistan at the time fought back and shot down two Indian air force planes. One Indian pilot was seized and later released among signs of calming tensions.