Wreckage of missing cargo plane found off Pakistan's coast

Dhaka: Civilian and naval search teams have located and recovered wreckage from a K2 Airways cargo plane that disappeared off Pakistan's coast while approaching Karachi, while search operations continue for five missing crew members.

The aircraft had departed from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and reported a navigational system problem before losing contact with air traffic control late on July 7.

Searchers in planes and ships located the floating debris in the Arabian Sea after roughly 12 hours of searching, Pakistan's Airports Authority confirmed in a statement.

Retired Rear Admiral Faisal Shah stated that rough seas are hindering efforts to locate the main wreckage, which is believed to lie in waters approximately 9,800 feet deep. He noted that ocean currents and wind could have carried floating wreckage far from the primary crash site.

K2 Airways identified the missing crew as Captain Muhammad Rizwan Idris, First Officer Faisal Jatoi, flight engineers Muhammad Hamid and Muhammad Arif Siddiqui, and aircraft loader Muhammad Taufiq Khan.

Radar data showed the plane making a sharp change in heading and rapidly descending before radar and radio contact were lost at 9:21 pm, about 287 kilometers west of Karachi.

The Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sympathy to the families of the crew and ordered all available government resources deployed to aid the search effort.

Aviation experts said it remained unclear what caused the aircraft to vanish from radar, noting that even an engine failure would normally allow a plane to glide rather than plunge suddenly. The exact cause would only become clear once investigators gathered more evidence.