RAWALPINDI: A team of the European Union Avia­tion Safety Agency (EASA) and European Commission will arrive in Pakistan on Nov 27 on a four-day visit to review measures taken by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) regarding issues of pilot licences, airworthiness and flight safety.

According to sources, EASA and European Commission team will arrive in Karachi on Nov 27 and will depart on Nov 30 after completing its visit to Pakistan.

During the visit, the EASA team would review the measures taken by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority regarding alleged irregularities in the pilots’ licences issue, flight standard and safety, and airworthiness.

The visiting team will also carry out audits of airlines in addition to reviewing the safety record of these airlines, said a senior official.

The EASA audit will determine airworthiness of PIA and whether the ban on flights for European countries will be lifted or not. The Pakistani authorities say they have already fulfilled the EASA requirements about flight safety and transparency in the pilot licences’ issue.

In 2020, EASA banned Pakistan International Airlines from flying to Europe and suspended the national airline’s authorisation to operate flights to EU member states after a fatal crash in May caused by a pilot’s error.

The restrictions were imposed in the light of the May 2020 Karachi plane crash and a statement made by the then aviation minister, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, in the parliament, telling the house that a large number of commercial pilots held fake licences or had cheated in exams.

Due to the EASA ban, Pakistan International Airlines has suffered Rs170 billion loss since restrictions were imposed on the airlines.

It is believed that after the visit of the EASA team, restrictions on PIA will be lifted.

Published in Dawn, November 22th, 2023