KARACHI: A Qatar Airways flight going from Delhi to Doha made an emergency landing at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi “due to indication of smoke in the cargo hold”.
The flight — QR579 — is carrying over 100 passengers. The airline said another flight is being arranged to take the passengers to Doha.
Flight QR579-Delhi to Doha diverted to Karachi (KHI) due to smoke detected in the cargo hold. The aircraft landed safely, passengers disembarked normally & were served breakfast. A relief flight is in KHI & will depart at approx. 2PM local time, we apologise for the inconvenience
— Qatar Airways (@qatarairways) March 21, 2022
“Flight QR579 from Delhi to Doha on 21 March diverted to Karachi having declared an emergency due to indication of smoke detected in the cargo hold. Aircraft landed safely in Karachi where it was met by emergency services and passengers disembarked,” Qatar Airways said.
“The incident is currently under investigation and a relief flight is being arranged to transport passengers onwards to Doha. We apologise for the inconvenience to our passengers who will be assisted with their onward travel plans,” the airline said.
#Breaking: A #QatarAirways flight QR579 from #Delhi to #Doha makes an emergency landing in #Karachi after smoke detected in cargo hold.
Airline says relief flight being arranged for journey to Doha. pic.twitter.com/GSzWXp71cr— The apprised (@the_apprised) March 21, 2022
A cardiologist tweeted to complain about the situation. “What is the status of QR579 — Delhi-Doha, diverted to Karachi? No information being offered, no food or water being offered to passengers. Customer care is clueless. Please help,” Dr Sameer Gupta tweeted.
In a video message, another passenger, Ramesh Raliya, said many have connecting flights from Doha, but they haven’t got any information about when the aircraft would take-off from Karachi.
The aircraft took off from Delhi at 3:50 am on Monday and landed at Karachi at 5:30 am, Raliya said.
“After landing, they made everyone deboard and wait at the airport. It’s 9 am now,” the passenger said in the video message. “They haven’t told us when the flight would take off. There are women and children, and many people have to take connecting flights from Doha,” he said.
