Vietnam grounds Pakistani pilots over license issue

Vietnam’s aviation authority had grounded all Pakistani pilots working for local airlines. The decision has been taken amid global regulators concerned that some pilots may have been using “dubious” licenses.

The CAAV said in a statement on Monday, “The head of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has ordered a suspension for all Pakistani pilots working for Vietnamese airlines,”

It said that the suspension will be enforced until CAAV issues further notices. It also said that Vietnam’s authority is coordinating with Pakistani authorities to examine pilots’ profiles.

Vietnam had earlier licensed 27 Pakistani pilots, and 12 of them were still performing duties. The other 15 pilots were inactive due to coronavirus or their contracts had expired.

Eleven of the active pilots are serving budget airlines Vietjet Aviation and one for Jetstar Pacific, a unit of the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines.

The CAAV said that Vietnam Airlines and Bamboo Airways are not hiring any pilots from Pakistan.

According to the information provided by CAAV, airlines in Vietnam currently have 1,260 pilots, half of them are holding foreign citizenship.