Pakistan has located the wreckage of a Boeing 737 cargo plane in the Arabian Sea, officials said, as search efforts continue for the five crew members who were onboard when the aircraft went missing. The plane, operated by K2 Airways Cargo, was en route to Karachi from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates when it disappeared from radar on Tuesday evening.

According to the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA), the aircraft experienced a navigational system issue shortly before it was tracked making a rapid descent around 21:21 local time (1621 GMT). Radar data revealed the plane’s altitude dropped sharply, followed by a brief climb and then a second steep descent before communication was lost approximately 155 nautical miles west of Karachi.

After about 12 hours of searching, Pakistan’s navy and maritime rescue agencies successfully identified the wreckage of the missing plane near Ormara, a town along Pakistan’s southern coast. The PAA confirmed the debris belonged to the K2 Airways Boeing 737 and shared images showing personnel recovering pieces of fuselage from a small boat onto a larger vessel. The debris included fragments marked with the airline’s distinctive red and white “K2 Air” branding.

Rescue teams remain on-site, continuing their efforts to locate the missing crew members. A source familiar with the operation told news agencies that both naval and merchant vessels, supported by military aircraft, are involved in the search.

Prior to the discovery of the wreckage, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the incident in an official statement, conveying condolences to the affected families.

The cause of the plane’s sudden loss of altitude and subsequent crash is still under investigation, with initial reports pointing to the navigational system malfunction reported by the crew before the event. Authorities have yet to release further technical details or confirmations regarding the final moments of the flight.