ISLAMABAD: Following the lifting of ban imposed on PIA (four years ago by EC and EASA), the national -flag carrier is all set to commence operations to Europe from 10th of January, 2025.
Initially, two flights will be operated weekly which will gradually be increased. It is pertinent to mention here that Sarwar Awan (then) aviation minister stated from the National Assembly floor, back in 2020, that licenses of Pakistani pilots were fake. As a result 109 commercial and 153 transport airline pilots were grounded.
Licenses of 141 PIA pilots, nine Air Blue pilots, 10 Serene Airline pilots, and 17 Shaheen Airlines pilots were scrutinized. Then, an over-smart PIA pilot crashed the aircraft over houses in Malir killing a hundred people. As a result EASA banned the national carrier from routes in Europe and UK costing PIA a loss of Rs. 40 billion per year. EASA has also issued Third Country Operator authorisation to Airblue.
