Lake Katrine resident among those killed in Friday plane crash in Pakistan

KINGSTON, N.Y. — A Lake Katrine man who was one of the victims of the Bhoja Air passenger jet crash in Pakistan was remembered Monday by his daughter as extremely compassionate and generous.

Lake Katrine resident Muhammad Abdullah was killed Friday evening when the passenger jet he was traveling on crashed as it tried to land in a thunderstorm at Islamabad’s main airport, killing all 127 on board. He worked for the Consulate General of Pakistan in Manhattan and was on an annual trip to his native land, his daughter, Maria Koehle, said Monday.

Koehle said her father had worked at the embassy for more than 20 years.

“He was the longest standing employee of that embassy,” she said.

Koehle, who lives in Stone Ridge, said a service for her father was held Sunday at the Mid-Hudson Islamic Association in Wappingers Falls. She said several dignitaries, including the vice consul for the embassy, attended the ceremony.

A call to the embassy was not immediately returned Monday.

Abdullah lived with this wife, Roshan Abbas, in Lake Katrine. They have two children, Koehle and her younger brother, Leon Abbas.

Koehle said her father was “extremely intelligent. Extremely kind and compassionate.” She added that her father was “always smiling, always.”

Abdullah was very generous with this time and spent it with other people, including his family, Koehle added.

The Pakistani government mandated Sunday that all airplanes operated by private airlines must undergo a new inspection to determine whether they are safe to fly. The Bhoja Air crash was the second in Pakistan in less than two years involving a private Pakistani airline. In both cases, the planes went down in bad weather as they approached the Benazir Bhutto International Airport.

Some experts speculated “wind shear,” sudden changes in wind speed or direction that can lift of smash an aircraft into the ground during landing, may have been a factor in Friday’s crash.

Bhoja Air only recently received a permit and began flying last month after it lost its license in 2001 because of financial difficulties.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.