Statuts:	Enquête Officielle
Date:	15 MAI 1958
Heure:	20:18
Type/Sous-type:	Convair CV-240-7
Compagnie:	Pakistan International Airlines - PIA
Immatriculation:	AP-AEH
Numéro de série:	52
Année de Fabrication:	1948
Heures de vol:	12668
Equipage:	victimes: 4 / à bord: 6
Passagers:	victimes: 17 / à bord: 32
Total:	victimes: 21 / à bord: 38
Victimes au sol:	victimes: 2
Dégats de l'appareil:	Perte Totale
Conséquences:	Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Lieu de l'accident:	Delhi-Palam Airport (DEL) (Inde)
Phase de vol:	En montée initiale (ICL)
Nature:	Transport de Passagers Intern.
Aéroport de départ:	Delhi-Palam Airport (DEL/VIDP), Inde
Aéroport de destination:	Karachi International Airport (KHI/OPKC), Pakistan
Numéro de vol:	205

Détails:
The PIA Convair CV-240 aircraft had landed at Delhi-Palam at 19:02 hours following an uneventful flight from Karachi. It was prepared for the return flight and taxied to runway 27 for departure. It was a moonless night and the visibility was almost 3 km due to dust haze. Takeoff was away from the built up area so there were no visual reference points and there was nothing which could have given the pilot a natural horizon. Takeoff was commenced at 20:18. Shortly after becoming airborne the landing gear was raised. Then the airplane began to descend again. It struck the ground at a shallow nose-down angle with the port wing slightly low and caught fire.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The captain did not properly observe and interpret his flight instruments and thus inadvertently permitted the aircraft to descend to the ground immediately after a night takeoff during which no visual reference was possible. A contributory factor may have been the slow reactions of the captain due to his state of health."

Sources:
» ICAO Accident Digest, Circular 59-AN/54 (135-138)