The 11-member Airbus team left Karachi for France after completing the probe into the PIA crash which had claimed the lives of 97 passengers and one person on the ground, 24NewsHD TV channel reported Monday.

The French experts, who had arrived in the port city on May 26, carried flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder along with them for decoding which would help in understanding the reasons behind the deadly incident and preparing a final report on the issue.

Meanwhile, two Pakistani experts too accompanied the French team, as they would be part of the further investigation process.

Last week, the investigators managed to find the missing cockpit voice recorder as the scope of the investigation into the Karachi plane crash was expanded. One part of the black box – digital satellite recorder – was found soon after the crash but the cockpit voice recorder couldn’t be found till Thursday.

The Airbus team used modern equipment to collect forensic evidence with the nearby buildings being searched by the voice recorder and analysed the crash from different angles. They also used drones during the process and it is expected the special expert team will also transport the parts of plane wreckage and samples of instruments to France for investigation.

Earlier, the Airbus team extended their stay in Pakistan for another five days as they continued searching for cockpit voice recorder. Sources say an attempt was made to decode the digital satellite recorder in Pakistan but the French experts expressed their reservations over the move and sent the instrument to France in a special flight. The investigators inspected the engine, landing gear and wings again. They also tried to determine from which direction the plane came and with which building it hit first.

Last Tuesday, Sindh Minister Saeed Ghani told a press conference in Karachi that the PIA and Civil Aviation Authority heads should be removed immediately. Describing the committee formed to probe the incident just a drama, he also called for formation of an impartial inquiry commission. Malik is responsible for the crash, he said, adding that the probe could not be impartial as the CEO had already shared the details of investigation.

Ghani accused Malik of terrifying the people so that no one could not speak up. The responsibility is being shifted to those who are now not in this world, said the PPP leader.

The Pakistan Airline Pilots Association (PALPA) members should be made part of the inquiry team, he stressed.

Similar views about the committee were previously expressed by PPP leader Nafisa Shah as the PALPA has already questioned the composition, expressing their doubts over the possible outcome.

But Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan later told a press conference that no one could be inducted into the investigation process at someone’s behest.

He, however, said Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to make public all the reports in the 12 plane crashes recorded in Pakistan’s history. The provisional report on the Karachi plane crash would be presented before the National Assembly on June 22, added Ghulam Sarwar.