Pakistan’s flag carrier to not appeal EU ban

Pakistan International Airlines, the Islamic nation's flag carrier, will not appeal against a sixmonth ban imposed on its lucrative flights to European locations, three officials said, in a blow to the ailing airline's pre-pandemic turnaround plans.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) banned PIA from flying to the bloc in June over safety concerns, days after the country grounded dozens of its pilots over allegedly dubious qualifications.

“We've decided that filing an appeal at this stage will be counter-productive,” PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan told Reuters.

The deadline to appeal expired on August 31. Two civil aviation officials told Reuters that all the stakeholders agreed that an appeal would be a futile exercise until reforms in the regulatory framework and a full probe into the pilots' scandal were completed.