A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Hajj flight, PK 839, made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia late Friday night after an unexpected sound was heard on the plane, according to Geo News, citing airline sources. The flight, which departed from Jinnah International Airport (JIA) in Karachi at 10 pm on Saturday, was en route to Jeddah when the incident occurred.
A passenger reported to Geo News that an explosion-like sound was heard, prompting the Hajj flight to divert to Riyadh for an emergency landing. Upon inspection, the Boeing 777 was found to be safe, and passengers were offloaded and accommodated in the airport lounge. The aircraft later resumed its journey to Jeddah after completing the necessary checks.
According to a PIA spokesperson, the pilot received a high-temperature warning in the cargo cabin, which led to the precautionary landing in Riyadh. It was subsequently determined that the warning was false, allowing the plane to continue to its destination.
Geo News also highlighted several other recent incidents involving PIA. On May 21, severe turbulence on a flight resulted in the death of a passenger from a suspected heart attack and injuries to 30 others. The flight had to make an emergency landing in Bangkok due to the turbulence.
In a related incident, a Singapore Airlines flight (SQ321) traveling from London to Singapore encountered severe turbulence on May 21, resulting in multiple injuries and one fatality. Harrowing images and videos of the turbulence and its aftermath have circulated widely online. A 28-year-old student, Dzafran Azmir, described the chaos to Reuters, noting that the aircraft suddenly tilted and dropped dramatically, causing unbelted passengers to be thrown into the ceiling, injuring themselves on overhead baggage compartments and breaking through light fixtures and oxygen mask panels.
These incidents underscore the importance of adhering to safety protocols and remaining vigilant during flights to ensure passenger safety.