US bans PIA flights over licence issue

karachi — The United States has banned Pakistan International Airlines from operating chartered flights to the country, the airline said, after it announced nearly 150 pilots would be grounded over fake or dubious licences.

The US Department of Transportation said it has revoked permission for PIA to conduct charter flights to the United States, citing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) concerns over Pakistani pilot certifications.

The ban has been placed on “all types of flights” operated by PIA, media reports said.

The ban follows a similar move by European Union aviation regulators to bar the state-run carrier for six months.

PIA said in a statement that the Federal Aviation Authority in the US had revoked approval for the airline due to “recent events identified by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority that are of serious concern to aviation safety”.

“It is a setback for us,” the PIA’s spokesman, Abdullah H. Khan said in an email. The airline was planning to expand the current special flights arrangements to re-initiate a regular schedule from Pakistan to the United States to provide direct flights, he said. “We are continuously engaged with them and sincerely hope that with the confidence building measures, the decision

would be reviewed,” Khan said.

Pakistan’s aviation minister revealed in June that a government review had found around 260 of the country’s 860 active pilots hold fake licences or cheated on exams.

PIA at the time said it would immediately ground about a third of its 434 pilots, just weeks after one of its planes crashed in Karachi killing 98 people — an accident blamed on pilot error.

So far 17 pilots have been fired in the first phase of its investigation, the PIA spokesman said.

The airline had suspended its commercial operations to the US in 2017 after booking financial losses on the route.

But in April the US Department

of Transport granted it special permission to operate chartered flights for one year, largely to bring back stranded Pakistanis during the coronavirus lockdown.

Earlier, Malaysia’s aviation regulatory authority also announced the temporary suspension of pilots who hold Pakistani licences and were employed by its domestic airlines.

The UAE, meanwhile, has sought verification of the CAA licences granted to Pakistani staff working at its airports.

The suspension of PIA flights is the latest fallout in line to batter Pakistan’s international image, apart from a range of other issues. —

It is a setback for us. We were planning to expand the current special flights arrangements. We are continuously engaged with them and sincerely hope that with the confidence building measures, the decision would be reviewed Abdullah H. Khan

PIA spokesman