Aviation Minister’s ‘Mindless’ Speech Led To Ban On PIA: Shehbaz Sharif

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif blamed Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan for banning Pakistan International Air (PIA) from other countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.

In a statement on the social networking site Twitter, Shehbaz Sharif said that “Ban on PIA imposed by several countries with the US being the latest is a consequence of mindless & ill-thought-out speech by Aviation Minister who only wanted to evade responsibility. Look at what he has done to the entire aviation industry besides bringing bad name to Pakistan!”

Ban on PIA imposed by several countries with the US being the latest is a consequence of mindless & ill-thought-out speech by Aviation Minister who only wanted to evade responsibility. Look at what he has done to the entire aviation industry besides bringing bad name to Pakistan!

— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) July 10, 2020

It may be recalled that the Aviation Minister had revealed in a speech in Parliament on June 30 that the licenses of 150 PIA pilots were suspicious.

Ghulam Sarwari Khan, while presenting the report of the plane that crashed in Karachi on May 22 in Parliament, had informed about the fake licenses of the pilots.

The PIA was later banned by several countries, including the European Union and the United Kingdom.

Yesterday, the United States also revoked the permission of PIA for a large number of special flights.

According to documents sent to PIA by the United States, the permission granted to PIA flights was reviewed at the behest of the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

“The safety of passengers, especially the certification of Pakistani pilots, is a matter of grave concern,” he said.

Earlier, the European Union and the United Kingdom imposed a six-month temporary ban on PIA flights.

In addition, several other countries had approached the relevant authorities for verification of Pakistani pilots and engineers.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Shibli Faraz had said in a press conference on July 7 that 28 PIA pilots with fake licenses had been sacked and all the fake licenses were issued during PPP and PML-N tenures.

He said that the issue of Pakistani pilots was also discussed in the cabinet meeting and a report was presented. 28 pilots with fake PIA licenses have been sacked.

On the other hand, the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) has removed the Pakistani airline from its ‘recommended list’ and relocated the existing UN staff in Pakistan to the PIA in Karachi in May 2020. Has instructed not to travel in any airline registered in Pakistan in the context of the investigation of passenger plane crash.

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