KARACHI: An Emirates airlines flight (EK-603) for Dubai had just reached the tarmac at 11.25pm on Sunday when the pilot made a hurried announcement: “The plane will not leave the airport for security reasons. Everyone is requested to remain seated.”

Surprised by the announcement, many passengers asked the flight attendants what exactly was happening but got such responses as “We are in contact with the security personnel on ground” or “It’ll take only half an hour”.

The half an hour became two hours and still there was no sign of the plane moving. What they did not know was that heavily armed militants had stormed Karachi airport’s old terminal and a gun battle was under way as the passengers were stranded in the middle of the runway.

On the same flight, Taimur Faisal, 16, who was travelling with his family to Dubai and thence to the United States, switched on his mobile phone as did many others. One of the first few people to share a text message mistakenly informed others that militants had taken over the “entire Karachi airport”.

“I knew something was wrong,” says the 16-year-old speaking to Dawn over the phone on Monday. “The flight attendants looked nervous. Eventually, as is the case with us Pakistanis, everyone stood up after a while which led to utter chaos inside the plane. People were scared that the militants will hijack the plane.”

Soon there was a blast, which was heard by everyone. “It was a plane full of people and suddenly there was complete silence, even if it lasted only a minute.”

After the momentary silence was over, there was speculation, recalls Taimur. “People were constantly on their mobile phones, those who were not were dependent on others for information. Though it was obvious by then that there were militants at the airport, most people got the terminal wrong which led to meltdowns, anger and fear.”

After two hours, the plane finally moved towards the gate to disembark passengers. “It was only when we saw the army and Airport Security Force after the main gate opened that the reality of what was happening outside sank in. The two pilots were also taken to safety, while we were asked to move quickly towards the lounge. I can’t thank the [security] forces enough who kept us safe despite everything they were going through outside,” he said.

As people took their seats inside the lounge, the lights started to dim, and they were informed by the security forces that the airport is in lockdown. “I could see smoke rising from the domestic terminal, but was not sure whether that was where the terrorists were hiding. It was a long night. There was no way we were going out.”

The only bakery inside the airport lounge had run out of snacks. “There were some people who fought for food but most others went towards the prayer area to sleep as we had to save that energy for another day. I and my family slept in our chairs as did others who didn’t find a place to sleep.”

Though the flights resumed at 4pm the following day, Taimur who spent 20 hours inside the airport says, “I had a lot of plans but I won’t fly for a few weeks now. I definitely need a break from an airport.”

Flight diverted to Lahore

At 11.40pm, around the other end of the airport, right above it, flight PK-305 was waiting for an airport official’s response. The flight was coming from Lahore and was about to land in Karachi when finally it got the orders to turn around. “Our flight was already delayed,” says Junaid Alam, 26. “The captain informed us that the flight will head back to Lahore. Since it was a Boeing 777 the captain said it couldn’t be taken to Nawabshah which was one of the options for landing.”

As the flight was still mid-air, nobody got the chance to switch on their mobile phones and so the confusion over why the plane was heading back to Lahore continued to grow. “At first I thought it was one of the usual problems that our flights have. But the way the staff grew quiet and the captain didn’t utter a word after that got me suspicious.”

Upon landing, people headed straight to the customer service counter at Allama Iqbal International Airport and within a minute people argued with the staff over a lack of arrangements for their stay. Speaking to Dawn over the phone on Monday, he says he won’t deny that he was worried. “My family is waiting for me back at home and I’m stuck in Lahore. Thankfully, I’m staying with a friend here. But our problems have only started, because the front office at the airport wasn’t being too helpful with information regarding our return flight. I’m on my own now, but when I think about the number of officials who were killed while we were on our way to safety, I don’t feel like complaining.”

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2014