Date: 28 September 1992
Airline: Pakistan International Airlines
Flight No.: 268
Aircraft: Airbus A300B4-203
Location: Kathmandu, Nepal
Fatalities: 167:167
Photographer: Unknown
PIA Flight 268 departed Karachi at 11:13am local time for a flight to Kathmandu. The enroute portion of the flight was uneventful and the aircraft was cleared for a Sierra approach to Kathmandu runway 02. The crew was instructed to maintain 11500ft and report at 16DME (16 miles from the VOR/DME beacon, which is located 0.6nm short of the runway). The Kathmandu approach is very difficult, since the airport is located in an oval-shaped valley surrounded by mountains as high as 9665ft. Runway elevation is 4313ft amsl. The next approach fixes for PIA268 were at 13 DME (at 10500ft), 10 DME (at 9500ft) and 8 DME (at 8200ft). A few seconds after reporting 10 DME, the aircraft was descending through 8200ft (the altitude for 8 DME). The Airbus crashed into a steep cloud-covered hillside at approximately 7300ft amsl., at 9.16 DME. Premature descent by the flight crew leading to a loss of terrain clearance.
