KARACHI: Regulators have barred Pakistan International Airlines from the European Union for six months after the state-run carrier grounded nearly a third of its pilots for holding fake or dubious licences, officials said on Tuesday (Jun 30).
The EU Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) told PIA "it is still not sure" if all the remaining pilots are properly qualified, and "they have lost their confidence" in the airline, PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan told AFP.
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The suspension is the latest fallout for PIA after Pakistan's aviation minister told parliament last week that a government review had found 262 of the country's 860 active pilots hold fake licenses or cheated on exams.
More than half of them were from PIA, and the airline said it would immediately ground 141 of its 434 pilots.
The EASA said it had suspended PIA and a smaller private Pakistan airline "in view of the recent investigation reported on in the Pakistani Parliament which revealed that a large share of pilot licenses issued in Pakistan are invalid".
PIA is filing an appeal, Khan said.
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The airline has only flown limited international flights for months as a result of the coronavirus. A resumption of domestic operations last month was followed by a crash blamed on pilot error that killed 98 people.
PIA had recently resumed bookings for five European capital cities, including Paris, Milan and Barcelona.
Flights to Britain, which is no longer in the EU, have also been suspended, Khan said.
The EASA said it suspended PIA "due to concerns about the capability of competent authorities to ensure that Pakistani air operators are in compliance with applicable international standards at all times".
Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed, a senior figure in the opposition Pakistan Peoples Party, said PIA's woes had "put the country's reputation at stake".
"The decision of the European Union is the result of successive follies of incompetent rulers," Ahmed said in a statement.
REFORMS 'INEVITABLE'
Prime Minister Imran Khan told parliament he would reform PIA and other government institutions.
"I want to tell my nation: We have no other option, reforms are inevitable," he said Tuesday.
Aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan has promised that a restructuring of PIA would be completed by the end of the year.Read More – Source
KARACHI: Regulators have barred Pakistan International Airlines from the European Union for six months after the state-run carrier grounded nearly a third of its pilots for holding fake or dubious licences, officials said on Tuesday (Jun 30).
The EU Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) told PIA "it is still not sure" if all the remaining pilots are properly qualified, and "they have lost their confidence" in the airline, PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan told AFP.
Advertisement
Advertisement
The suspension is the latest fallout for PIA after Pakistan's aviation minister told parliament last week that a government review had found 262 of the country's 860 active pilots hold fake licenses or cheated on exams.
More than half of them were from PIA, and the airline said it would immediately ground 141 of its 434 pilots.
The EASA said it had suspended PIA and a smaller private Pakistan airline "in view of the recent investigation reported on in the Pakistani Parliament which revealed that a large share of pilot licenses issued in Pakistan are invalid".
PIA is filing an appeal, Khan said.
Advertisement
Advertisement
The airline has only flown limited international flights for months as a result of the coronavirus. A resumption of domestic operations last month was followed by a crash blamed on pilot error that killed 98 people.
PIA had recently resumed bookings for five European capital cities, including Paris, Milan and Barcelona.
Flights to Britain, which is no longer in the EU, have also been suspended, Khan said.
The EASA said it suspended PIA "due to concerns about the capability of competent authorities to ensure that Pakistani air operators are in compliance with applicable international standards at all times".
Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed, a senior figure in the opposition Pakistan Peoples Party, said PIA's woes had "put the country's reputation at stake".
"The decision of the European Union is the result of successive follies of incompetent rulers," Ahmed said in a statement.
REFORMS 'INEVITABLE'
Prime Minister Imran Khan told parliament he would reform PIA and other government institutions.
"I want to tell my nation: We have no other option, reforms are inevitable," he said Tuesday.
Aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan has promised that a restructuring of PIA would be completed by the end of the year.Read More – Source
