Probe into PIA plane crash near Havelian completed after four years

The investigation board has released the inquiry report of the 2016 PIA PK-661 plane crash near Havelian, holding PIA engineers responsible for the incident.

According to the inquiry report, a fractured turbine blade triggered a “complicated” sequence of failures that culminated in the fatal Havelian PIA crash in 2016.

“The dislodging / fracture of PT-1 blade of No 1 Engine occurred after omission from the EMM (Non-Compliance of SB-21878) by PIA Engineering during an unscheduled maintenance performed on the engine in November 2016, in which the PT-1 blades had fulfilled the criteria for replacement, but were not replaced,” the report stated.

The report further said that in February 2017, PIA Engineering reviewed the life of the old design PT-1 blades. “PIA Engineering decided to change the soft life as a hard life of 10,000 hrs irrespective of the conditions given in the maintenance manual (an action overboard towards safe side).”

PIA’s PK-661, crashed while travelling from Chitral to Islamabad on December 7, 2016. All 48 passengers and crew aboard, including religious scholar and former singer Junaid Jamshed, died in the crash.

The report said that most probably, the PT-1 blade had fractured during the previous flight (Peshawar to Chitral).

The summarized sequence of the technical failures was as follows:

Before the accident flight:

Engine Power Turbine Stage 1 (PT-1) Blade fractured/dislodged causing imbalanced rotation of PT shaft.

OSG pin fractured.

Probable contamination (external from the engine) in PVM.

It is pertinent to mention here that PM Imran in May 2020 had ordered to make public all reports on fatal plane crashes that happened in past.

PM Khan had chaired the meeting regarding PIA Karachi plane crash and had ordered to public Junaid Jamshed plane crash report.