Aviation minister suggests PIA software follows the International Civil Aviation Business clearing the airline in a security audit.
Karachi, Pakistan – Pakistan Worldwide Airways (PIA), the national flag carrier of the South Asian country, expects to restart European flight functions, suspended in 2020 about security issues, by March, the country’s aviation minister suggests.
Speaking at a press conference in the Pakistani money, Islamabad, on Thursday, Ghulam Sarwar Khan explained the Global Civil Aviation Group (ICAO) had cleared Pakistani aviation in a security audit done late very last calendar year, and that PIA experienced used for a resumption of European functions.
Europe’s aviation regulator, the European Union Aviation Basic safety Company (EASA), suspended flights operated by Pakistani carriers in 2020, subsequent the crash of a PIA Airbus A320 in the southern metropolis of Karachi that killed 97 passengers and activated a subsequent governing administration investigation into fraudulent licensing tactics.
On Thursday, Aviation Minister Khan claimed 50 Pakistani pilots’ licences experienced been cancelled pursuing the investigation, with five Pakistani Civil Aviation Authority officers fired and billed with fraud.
At minimum 8 pilots at PIA were dismissed in link with the investigation, he said.
“We are hoping that in February or March [PIA flight] functions in Europe will start out once more,” he reported.
In July 2020, an Al Jazeera investigation uncovered common allegations of fraud in pilot licensing strategies in Pakistan. Several pilots also expressed worry over security standards, with just one senior pilot describing the circumstance as “a ticking time bomb”.
Pakistan has witnessed five significant commercial or constitution airliner crashes considering the fact that 2010, killing at minimum 445 persons.
The identical interval has noticed numerous non-lethal aircraft accidents, including mid-flight motor shutdowns, landing equipment failures, runway overruns and at the very least one particular on-the-ground collision, official experiences display.
Thursday’s announcement arrived a day immediately after the ICAO gave Pakistan’s civil aviation regulator the all-clear on resolving sizeable security problems, soon after an audit team visited the state late in 2021.
Khan stated Pakistan was overhauling its pilot certification procedure, signing an agreement with United Kingdom civil aviation authorities for pilots to be accredited and tested in conjunction with that company.
Asad Hashim is Al Jazeera’s electronic correspondent in Pakistan. He tweets @AsadHashim.
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