Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) said on Wednesday that authorities in the United Kingdom have still not decided whether they would lift the flight ban on the airline.
The statement comes amid reports that the flight ban on the national flag carrier had been extended. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and UK authorities had suspended permission for PIA to operate in the region in June 2020 after Pakistan began investigating the validity of pilots’ licenses following a deadly plane crash that killed 97 people.
The ban on PIA operating in the EU was lifted]4 by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in November last year, which was a prerequisite for approval from the UK Department of Transportation (DfT) to allow PIA to resume its flights to the UK. A delegation of the UK’s DfT had visited Pakistan to evaluate aviation safety standards in February as well.
“No announcement has been made by the UK DfT nor has any letter been received,” the statement by the spokesperson said today.
“All institutions related to aviation in Pakistan are in constant contact with them and are carrying out their work in a coordinated manner.”
Rumours and speculation should be avoided in this regard, the statement added.
After the EASA approval, PIA finally resumed flights to Europe with a flight to Paris from Islamabad in January of this year.
To celebrate the relaunch, PIA decorated the aircraft with a model of the Eiffel Tower on its tail and the slogan “I Love Paris” on the nose. The Boeing 777 was prepared in line with European Union aviation standards.
A delegation of the UK’s DfT visited PIA’s headquarters and inspected the national flag carrier’s flight operations, flight safety and engineering.
The UK team was welcomed by Civil Aviation Authority Director General Nadir Shafi Dar and the heads of various departments.
Meanwhile, the Privatisation Commission last week recommended to the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation a transaction structure for the second attempt of Pakistan International Airlines Company Ltd (PIACL) based on the divestment of 51 to 100 per cent shares capital of the national flag carrier.
The proposed divestment will be together with the management control of the airline as well. The final terms and conditions for the transfer and acquisition of equity stake will be finalised during the course of bidding process and set out in the bid documents for approval by the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation.
