PIA ‘aged’ plane’s flat tyre leaves travelers stranded for days at Multan airport

WEB DESK: In a bizarre turn of events at Multan Airport, a routine tyre puncture incident on a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Boeing aircraft disrupted the schedules of 10 flights and left thousands of passengers hanging for almost a week.

According to Jung Urdu, It all started when PIA’s flight PK 716 from Madinah to Multan, flown by a Boeing 777, got a flat tyre. Furthermore, the next flight, PK 715, scheduled for the same night, left Multan for Madinah but was delayed by a significant seven hours and 40 minutes.

With a replacement tyre making its way from Lahore by road, the aging aircraft, around 15 years old, managed to embark on its journey the following morning with a delay of only nine hours and 16 minutes.

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The reports said that the repercussions of the unforeseen tire saga rippled through subsequent flights. Karachi-bound PK 744 faced a delay of 10 hours and 7 minutes whereas flight PK 731 from Karachi to Jeddah followed suit with a delay of nine hours and 22 minutes.

Fast forward to October 7, and the Islamabad to Riyadh flight PK 760 experienced an eight-hour and 14-minute delay. The return flight PK 761 from Riyadh to Islamabad endured an eight-hour and 33-minute delay.

The tyre troubles that began on October 6 persisted, casting a shadow on the Riyadh-bound flight PK 753, with a delay of eight hours and 14 minutes during takeoff on October 8.

Meanwhile, flight PK 742 from Islamabad to Jeddah on October 9 faced a two-hour delay, while Lahore-bound PK 760 was tardy by two hours and 12 minutes.

The incident left passengers, including Umrah pilgrims, stranded at the airport. The media reports suggested that alternative arrangements could have been made, but a scarcity of planes dashed the hopes, leaving the disrupted travelers in a holding pattern of frustration.