Investigators have determined that the first officer of a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Airbus A320 selected the incorrect Instrument Landing System (ILS) frequency before landing on the wrong runway during a diversion at Lahore on January 17, 2025.
The flight, PK150, was operating from Dammam, Saudi Arabia, to Multan, Pakistan. Due to poor visibility at Multan, down to just 50 meters, the crew decided to divert. Initially, Karachi was chosen as the diversion airport, where visibility was better, but the crew opted for Lahore instead, considering passenger convenience and cabin crew duty time.
BASIP, the Pakistani aviation authority, highlighted that selecting an alternate airport with tougher conditions goes against safe procedures when no technical issues with the aircraft exist. Lahore had low-visibility procedures in place due to fog.
During the approach, the first officer mistakenly selected ILS 36L instead of ILS 36R, which resulted in two different frequencies—109.7 MHz and 109.9 MHz. Although the captain communicated the correct runway, the wrong frequency was mentioned, likely due to prior familiarity with Karachi’s runway, which shares the same frequency.
Both pilots failed to cross-check the ILS frequencies during descent and approach. Despite communicating the correct runway, they did not notice the error on their flight-management system or cockpit displays. Investigators pointed out that the first officer’s task of feeding data into the flight-management system was a clear violation of standard procedure, as this responsibility should have rested with the captain, with the first officer checking the inputs.
The captain had to correct an incorrect missed-approach altitude set by the first officer. Additionally, the first officer, with only 160 hours on the Airbus A320, appeared to lack sufficient knowledge and required further support from the captain.
While Lahore tower cleared the aircraft to land on runway 36R, the tower controller, who did not have visual contact with the aircraft, failed to monitor it on radar. As the aircraft deviated from the intended flight path, the controller failed to initiate a go-around and, instead, switched on the approach lights for runway 36L.
Despite the aircraft’s misalignment, both controllers hesitated to order a go-around, fearing possible punitive action from their superiors, which the investigation suggests reflects a toxic safety culture. Ultimately, the aircraft landed safely on runway 36L, with no injuries among the 182 passengers and crew members.
The investigation concluded that the pilots demonstrated poor situational awareness, poor task-sharing, and a breakdown in crew resource management, all of which contributed to the misalignment and unsafe approach.
