PIA flight PK-308 lands with rear wheel missing

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight, PK308, experienced a rear wheel detachment while landing in Lahore; however, the aircraft managed to land safely without incident, authorities confirmed on Wednesday.

This incident in which an aircraft flying from Karachi to Lahore, PK-308 was involved has spurred a series of inquiries into the matter.

The Airbus A320, which had been on a flight, rolled in around 10 PM with one of its rear wheels missing, officials found. It was only after the plane landed and taxied to its parking at the Lahore airport that the absence of the officials was noticed.

Soon after this, Lahore ATCO informed authorities in Karachi, who recovered the remaining piece of the tire’s shaft on the runway. However, officers searched for more than 14 hours at both airports but did not find the missing wheel.

Initial reports indicate that all wheels of the aircraft were initially intact when it departed Karachi.

Registration APBLS Preliminary observations indicated that the incident might have happened due to “a possible bird strike at Karachi runway”, a PIA spokesman said.

Sources said that as the pilots found all the systems normal, they may not have known that the wheel was missing and landed and taxied the aircraft in a normal manner at Lahore airport.

According to details provided by Air Marshal Arshad Malik, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), a team has flown to Lahore to conduct a detailed investigation into the incident. Authorities in the Safety and Aviation Investigation departments have also begun an investigation into how the airplane was permitted to continue to its destination despite impaired landing gear.

The Flight Safety Department of PIA has initiated an elaborate probe to ascertain the exact reason for wheel dislodgement and review the safety protocol.

Aviation experts point out that today’s planes are built with redundant systems that permit safe landings despite the damage or loss of certain components.

There are questions being asked about runway inspection procedures and pre-flight checks at Karachi airport prior to the incident.

It is still unclear how many passengers were on board the flight as authorities have not revealed details about the connecting travel and whether any arrangement was made for the passengers.