After landing at Lahore Airport, a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Airbus A320 was found to be missing one of its wheels on Wednesday evening.
The aircraft, registration AP-BLS, departed on time at 8:00 PM local time from Karachi for its flight to Lahore. After one hour and fifteen minutes, the plane landed seemingly without issues at its destination. It then taxied to the apron, where passengers safely disembarked.
Pakistan International Airlines launches an investigation after flight PK306, traveling from Karachi to Lahore, landed at Allama Iqbal International Airport without one of its wheels.
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) March 13, 2025
A PIA spokesperson stated that the issue was discovered during an inspection following the… pic.twitter.com/QbJywz3faX
Missing wheel
During the post-flight inspection, it became clear that the A320 was missing its left nose wheel, as shown in images circulating on social media. The cause of the issue remains uncertain.
Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) told AV Herald that the missing wheel might have been caused by a ‘foreign object’ at Karachi Airport, where bolts and nuts were found on the runway. However, the wheel itself has not been located, leading Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to officially list it as missing.
Flights canceled
According to Flightradar24 data, the A320 was scheduled to operate a flight from Lahore to Muscat, Oman’s capital, the next day. However, that flight was canceled. The aircraft was also expected to return to service today, but once again, the flight did not take place. The A320 remains grounded in Lahore, and it is unclear when it will return to service.
While aircraft losing wheels is rare, it does happen occasionally. In December last year, air traffic controllers had to inform unsuspecting pilots of an American Airlines Boeing 737-800 that a wheel had detached shortly after takeoff. Similarly, in July, a United Airlines Boeing 757 also lost a wheel.