News Desk |
A Peshawar-bound flight of the Pakistan International Airlines from Karachi was cleared by security officials after the airport authorities received a fake bomb alert, a PIA spokesperson informed the media on Monday afternoon.
The flight PK-350 was en route to Peshawar from Karachi when the flight dispatch center in Karachi received the call alerting about the bomb on flight approximately 10-15 minutes before landing.
The unidentified caller had informed the PIA reservation center about boarding the flight with explosives.
The aircraft landed safely on Peshawar airport but the emergency was declared on the airport as the pilot had already alerted the control tower about the alleged bomb on the flight.
The airport was evacuated and the passengers were escorted safely from the aircraft while the plane was parked at the end of the runway for security check. Afterwards, the security official and bomb disposal squad searched the aircraft after which it was cleared for further operation.
The aircraft is scheduled for Dubai for its next flight. The Pakistan International Airlines officials took to Twitter and updated the people regarding the situation in the latest tweet.
The tweets, however, were made in the Urdu language to facilitate the local passengers. This is not the first time PIA have received a hoax bomb alert.
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Similar Previous Incidents
Back in 2006, a Karachi-bound flight from Lahore encountered similar trouble. The unidentified caller had informed the PIA reservation center about boarding the flight with explosives. The information was immediately conveyed to the airport authorities and the passengers were asked to disembark.
The luggage was unloaded as the bomb disposal staff, airport security force and others started a search for the explosives and the suspect. The passengers were asked not to leave the boarding lounge for security reasons.
Passengers, however, wanted to leave the airport and cancel their journey further. Passengers traveling to other destinations like Dubai also missed their flight.