Indo-Pak midair camaraderie wins hearts across borders

An air traffic controller in Pakistan on Thursday saved a plane flying from the Indian city of Jaipur to Muscat, by guiding it through air traffic during an emergency, a media report said.

According to reports, the air plane, carrying 150 passengers, was flying over the Karachi region when it was caught in the middle of a weather pattern with lots of lightning that could have resulted in a catastrophe, Geo News reported.

Following the lightning strikes, the plane dropped down from an altitude of 36,000 feet to 34,000 feet almost immediately.

As a result, the pilot initiated emergency protocol and broadcast 'Mayday' to nearby stations.

The air traffic controller from Pakistan responded to the call of the captain of the plane and directed it through the dense air traffic in the vicinity for the remainder of the journey in Pakistani airspace.

Sources in the aviation authority said that the aircraft had encountered abnormal weather conditions near the Chor area of the southern province of Sindh.

Islamabad has, for more than a month, restricted access of Pakistani airspace to Indian planes as its protest over Kashmir.

Indo-Asian News Service