RAWALPINDI: A delegation of the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) has reached Brussels to attend a technical meeting called to discuss the possibility of lifting a flight ban to the EU member states in the coming months.

A spokesperson for the CAA said on Monday that the European Commission has invited the delegation for a technical meeting on Oct 25.

The meeting has been called to discuss the measures taken by the PCAA after an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

After the audit, the PCAA had implemented various safety and other issues-related actions, which will also come under discussion in the meeting.

The meeting will be followed by a visit of the Euro­pean Commission’s team during the first quarter of 2023. An onsite visit was a prerequisite for Pakistani airlines to resume flights to European countries.

The five-member delegation of the PCAA includes deputy director general regulatory, director airworthiness, director personnel and licensing, director flight standards and an additional director legal.

Pakistani airlines, including Pakistan International Airlines, were banned from operating to the EU member states after the national flag carrier’s passenger plane crashed in Karachi in May 2020.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2022