Plane Carrying About 127 Passengers Crashes Near Islamabad Airport

A plane carrying up to 127 passengers has crashed near the Islamabad international airport. Aviation officials said the Bhoja Air plane, flight BHO-213, was flying from Karachi to Islamabad when it crashed in bad weather near Chaklala, Rawalpindi. It was scheduled to leave Karachi at 17:00 local time (12:00 GMT) and due to arrive at 18:50 (13:50 GMT). Emergency teams were reported to be on their way to the crash site, near Baria Town residential complex. Reports suggest the plane was making its final approach to the airport when the crash happened. Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhar said it burst into flames before it came down a few miles from the airport. Plane crashes are relatively rare in Pakistan, where inter-city travel is most efficient by air. In July 2010, an Airbus 321 passenger jet operated by the private airline Airblue crashed into hills overlooking Islamabad while coming in to land after a flight from Karachi, killing 152 people on board.