KARACHI: A fine of 2,000 pounds has been imposed on the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) after an air hostess arrived in the United Kingdom with an expired passport.

Talking to Dawn, PIA spokesman Rafique Zardari said that Shazia Riaz was found to be carrying the out-of-date passport when she landed at London airport aboard the flight PK785 that had left Islamabad on Saturday.

The fine was paid by the PIA but would be recovered from the air hostess because it was her mistake, he added.

It is the second time in the past few months that crew members of a PIA flight have been caught in the UK with invalid travel documents, although the airline has a department tasked with keeping their papers in order.

Sources said the role of the immigration branch of the Federal Investigation Agency, which checks travel documents of international passengers and the staff posted at Islamabad airport, might come under scrutiny as the air hostess had flown from there.

The Islamabad FIA staffers are already under scrutiny after at least two groups of Afghan nationals travelled to Britain on forged documents and one of them was caught by the UK authorities, which are conducting an investigation into the matter.

Published in Dawn, November 25th , 2014