- Army Chief attended funeral prayers of martyred military personnel
RAWALPINDI, July 30: At least 19 people lost their lives including five military personnel when a plane of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Mora Kalu in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the aircraft was on a routine training flight when it crashed but there was no immediate word on the cause of the accident or the type of aircraft involved. Two pilots were among the five army personnel martyred.
The crash also resulted in 13 fatal civilian casualties while 12 others were injured, ISPR added. However, local officials placed the number of civilian deaths at 14.
Lt Col Saqib, Lt Col Wasim, Naib Subedar Afzal, Hawaldar Amin and Hawaldar Rahmat were among the martyred, the military’s media wing added.
Soon after the crash, a massive fire broke out that engulfed several houses in the locality.
Rescue teams of 1122 and Pakistan Army immediately reached the site and started the rescue operation.
ISPR added, rescue officials had extinguished the fire caused by the crash and moved the injured to a local hospital. In 2016, a Pakistan International Airlines plane burst into flames after one of its two turboprop engines failed while travelling from remote northern Pakistan to Islamabad, killing more than 40 people. Agencies/NNI
