Shumaila Aslam
Bureau Chief Pakistan
Scandinavian News Agency
Finland
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has officially resumed flights to the United
Kingdom after a five-year suspension that followed a fake pilot license scandal.
The national carrier faced bans from both the UK and the European Union in June 2020, after a deadly Karachi crash claimed nearly 100
lives and investigations revealed that several PIA pilots had obtained fraudulent licenses.
Following extensive safety audits and reforms, the European ban was lifted in November 2024, paving the way for PIA to restore suspended routes earlier this year.
On Saturday, PIA’s first Boeing 777 flight from Islamabad to Manchester marked a major milestone in rebuilding international trust in Pakistan’s aviation system.
At the inauguration ceremony, Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said,
“The flight to Manchester is a remarkable beginning, but we are firmly determined to start flights to London and Birmingham next.”
About The Author
