The Bhoja Air flight, which crashed near Islamabad today, appears to have been on final approach to the city's airport.
118 passengers and nine crew members were reportedly onboard the Boeing 737, which was on a flight from Karachi to Islamabad. There are no reports of survivors so far.
Local news sources say that the aircraft crashed around four miles southeast from the airport, which suggests that it was on final approach to runway 30. Bad weather with heavy rain and a low cloud ceiling were prevailing at the time.
Unconfirmed reports identify the aircraft as Boeing 737-200, registration AP-BKC. According to Flightglobal's Ascend Online database, the 737-200 Advanced aircraft was built in 1984. It is powered by Pratt & Whitney JT8D-15A engines and has been operated by Bhoja Air since January this year.
Karachi-based Bhoja Air relaunched its services last month, after it had fallen into financial difficulties and suspended its operations. Flights began between Karachi and Lahore in early March. The network was extended to Faisalabad, Islamabad, Multan and Sukkur later that month. The airline's website indicates
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
