As the search for the missing K2 Airways Boeing 737-400 cargo aircraft en route from Sharjah to Pakistan’s Karachi continues, the preliminary data from flight-tracking service FlightRadar suggests the airplane a possible crash in the sea southwest of Karachi.
According to the data from FlightRadar, the preliminary Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) (a surveillance technology where aircraft use GPS to determine their position and continuously broadcast it—along with altitude, speed, and identification—to ground stations and other aircraft ) indicated a loss of altitude, followed by a climb, and then a second, sudden and dramatic loss of altitude.
It added that the final received data point from the aircraft placed it at 1,100 ft AMSL (Above Mean Sea Level) with a reported vertical rate of -22,400 feet per minute. The aircraft experienced GNSS interference, which is disruption of satellite data, shortly after take-off, along with other aircraft in the region, resulting in degraded navigation data near Sharjah.
“Once the aircraft exited the area subject to GNSS interference, ADS-B data was once again received by Flightradar24,” it added.
However, by 9:18 pm, the flight reported a navigational system issue and was promptly guided by the Karachi Area Control Centre (ACC). Within three minutes, the aircraft was observed on radar “rapidly descending” and making a sharp change in heading. After this, all radar contact and communication was lost, approximately 287 kilometres west of Karachi.
The Pakistani authorities have initiated a rescue and search mission involving various agencies. Pakistan Navy's warship PNS Zulfiqar was dispatched to the affected area along with a Pakistan Air Force SAAB plane. A Pakistan Navy ATR plane had also taken off to join the search operation along with Pakistan National Shipping Corporation's commercial ship Lahore.
The Bureau of Air Safety Investigation will investigate the cause of the crash.
The aircraft entered service with K2 Airways in 2024. It was originally delivered to Aeroflot as a passenger aircraft in 1999 before joining Garuda Indonesia in 2004. The aircraft was converted into a freighter in 2012 and later operated by TNT Airways and ASL Airlines.
