Pakistan is expected to receive approval from British aviation authorities to resume direct flight operations by the first quarter of 2025, pending close inspection by British officials scheduled for January.
Director General of the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA), Nadir Shafi Dar, confirmed in an interview with a local daily newspaper that representatives of the British Ministry of Transport and the British Civil Aviation Authority will conduct an inspection visit in the third week of January 2025.
An online meeting between the two sides is also scheduled for the third week of December 2024.
He added, “The inspection will follow criteria similar to the European Union’s assessment, which yielded positive results.” “We are optimistic that the evaluation will lead to operational approval within weeks,” Dar said.
Before the suspension, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) operated 21 weekly flights to the UK, including 10 to London, nine to Manchester, and two to Birmingham.
PIA officials expect a significant increase in revenues once flights to the UK and Europe resume.
Earlier, Pakistan International Airlines said it would resume its flights to Europe in January, starting from Paris, after the European Union aviation regulator lifted the ban imposed on the national carrier.
PIA’s authorization to operate in the European Union was suspended in June 2020 due to concerns about the ability of Pakistani authorities and its Civil Aviation Authority to ensure compliance with international aviation standards.
“We have received approval for the first flight schedule that we have submitted,” PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafeez Khan said, adding that the airline will open bookings on December 9 for its scheduled January 10 flight with a Boeing 777 to Paris.
The European Union and Britain’s aviation safety agency suspended PIA’s permission to operate in the region after Pakistan began investigating a scandal over the validity of pilot licenses following a plane crash that killed 97 people.
The ban costs the loss-making airline 40 billion rupees ($144 million) annually in revenue.
PIA has a 23% share in Pakistan’s domestic aviation market, but its fleet of 34 aircraft cannot compete with Middle Eastern airlines that have a 60% share, due to the lack of direct flights, despite having agreements with 87 countries and landing slots. Main.
Pakistan’s attempt to privatize PIA failed when it received only one bid, far below the asking price.