KARACHI, Pakistan – A Pakistani-registered Boeing 737 cargo aircraft carrying five crew members disappeared from radar late Tuesday night, July 7, after reporting navigation system problems while flying from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates to Karachi, according to Pakistan’s aviation authorities. The 27-year-old converted freighter, operated by K2 Airways, lost contact with air traffic controllers at approximately 9:21 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time, just minutes after the crew reported issues with the aircraft’s navigation systems. Pakistan Airports Authority said search and rescue operations have been launched in the Arabian Sea following the aircraft’s disappearance. Preliminary flight data suggests the aircraft may have crashed southwest of Karachi.
According to flight tracking website Flightradar24, the Boeing 737-400 experienced a series of dramatic altitude changes in its final moments. Data showed the aircraft descended approximately 5,000 feet in less than a minute before climbing about 6,000 feet within 30 seconds. It then entered a steep and rapid descent from an altitude of 36,550 feet. The last transmitted data indicated the aircraft was at just 1,100 feet above sea level and descending at an alarming rate of 22,400 feet per minute, equivalent to roughly 400 kilometers per hour vertically.
Air traffic controllers reportedly attempted to assist the crew after the navigation failure was reported at 9:18 p.m., but communication was lost three minutes later. At the time, the aircraft was approximately 287 kilometers west of Karachi. Local broadcaster Geo News reported that the aircraft disappeared while flying over the Arabian Sea near Ormara in Pakistan’s Balochistan province. Aviation safety consultant Anthony Brickhouse cautioned against drawing conclusions from the limited data available.
“Whenever you see something that dramatic, it gets your attention, but it’s too early to say what it means without additional information,” he said. The missing aircraft is a Boeing 737-400 powered by engines manufactured by CFM International, a joint venture between GE Aerospace and France’s Safran. According to Flightradar24, the aircraft was originally delivered to Russia’s Aeroflot as a passenger jet in 1999 before being converted into a cargo aircraft in 2012.
The aircraft joined K2 Airways in 2024 and is reportedly the airline’s only aircraft. Neither K2 Airways nor Boeing had issued a statement at the time of publication. If fatalities are confirmed, it would mark Pakistan’s deadliest aviation accident since 2020, when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A320 crashed during an attempted landing in Karachi, killing 97 people. Authorities said the search operation remains ongoing as rescue teams scour the waters off Pakistan’s southern coast for any sign of the missing aircraft.
