EU lifts ban on Pakistan International Airlines
A London-bound state-run Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane taxies before take-off from Karachi International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, on Apr. 21, 2010. (AFP Photo)
Pakistan International Airlines announced that the national airline will resume flights to Europe as the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) decided to lift the four-year ban on Jan. 10, 2025.
The statement from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Saturday, which was at the center of a pilot license scandal, said a “PIA flight will depart from Islamabad to Paris on Jan. 10.”.
“Initially, two flights will be operated weekly (on Friday and Sunday), which will gradually be increased,” read the statement.
PIA was barred from flying to the EU in June 2020, a month after one of its aircraft plunged into a street in the southern city of Karachi, killing nearly 100 people.
The disaster was attributed to human error by the pilots and air traffic control and was followed by allegations that nearly a third of the licenses for its pilots were fake or dubious.
The airline remains banned from operating in the U.S.
After Europe’s ban was lifted last week, a spokesman for the carrier said they would “strictly adhere to EASA’s regulations and guidelines,” referring to the European Union’s aviation authority.
PIA, which employs 7,000 people, has long been accused of being bloated and poorly run—hobbled by unpaid bills, a poor safety record and regulatory issues.
Pakistan’s government has said it is committed to privatizing the debt-ridden airline and has been scrambling to find a buyer.
Last month, a deal fell through after a potential buyer reportedly offered a fraction of the asking price.
The sale was also part of IMF demands in exchange for aid programs, including the privatization of public companies, establishing a broader tax base, and ending subsidies for the 40 percent of Pakistanis who live below the poverty line.
In 2023, PIA had losses of $270 million, according to the local media.
Its liabilities were nearly $3 billion, about five times the total worth of its assets.
Last year, dozens of flights were canceled when it could not afford fuel for its planes.
While speaking to reporters last week, Pakistan’s aviation minister, Khawaja Asif, called the restoration of flights to Europe a “major value addition” that will make the airline more attractive to potential buyers.
PIA came into being in 1955 when the government nationalized a loss-making commercial airline, and it enjoyed rapid growth until the 1990s.
