Havelian plane crash: CAA submits report in SHC

LAHORE: A division bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) heard on Thursday a petition seeking directives for the authorities concerned to make the report of an inquiry into the 2016 Havelian plane crash public.

The bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, took up the case. A counsel for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) submitted a reply in the court. The bench directed the petitioner and respondents to submit a rejoinder to the CAA response.

Also Read: SHC wants those responsible for Havelian crash named

The court adjourned the hearing due to the absence of petitioner Iqbal Kazmi who was stated to be unwell. It directed CAA officials to ensure their presence at the next hearing.

At the previous hearing, the SHC had directed the CAA to furnish a comprehensive report in the case.

Forty-seven passengers, including TV personality Junaid Jamshed, were killed when the ill-fated plane, PK-661, crashed in Havelian while travelling from Chitral to Islamabad.

Justice Mazhar asked, “Did PIA fix the responsibility for the crash after a probe report?” The report would not have come to the fore had this court not passed the order, he remarked.

Read: Probe report holds ‘PIA engineers’ responsible for Havelian plane crash

“The report took four years to reach the court,” the SHC judge observed and expressed resentment over CAA and PIA officials for appearing before the court without reading the report.

“42 people died in the crash. What lessons did you learn from the tragedy?” he asked. “I had told you to come to the court after reading the report but no one has done so.” The officials said PIA and CAA are putting in place more measures to improve operational safety to deter such crashes.