A short but important update on Live and Let’s Fly concerning our continuing coverage of the pilot scandal that has adversely impacted Pakistan International Airlines. 58 pilots have now been cleared.
58 “Fake” Pilots Cleared At PIA
In June, Pakistan’s Minister for Aviation stated that 262 of 860 active pilots in Pakistan (30%) were not legally certified to fly. 141 of these pilots flew for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). The revelation sent shockwaves through the industry not only in Pakistan, but across the world. The European Union, United Kingdom, Canada, United Arab Emirates, and the United Sates responded by blacklisting PIA.
But the truth turned out to be more complicated. In an exclusive interview with a PIA pilot, Live and Let’s Fly laid out why the case against many pilots was circumstantial at best and downright void at worst.
> Read More:A “Fake” Pilot From Pakistan International Airlines Speaks Out
Three months later, that pilot’s story was validated…at least for him and many of his colleagues.
Per Pakistani media, the Pakistan Airline Pilots Association (PALPA) notes that 58 “wrongly suspended” pilots have been exonerated. Investigations and court cases continue for many others.
No pilot, apparently, has been found to have been deliberately or deceptively operating without a valid license.
However, the damage remains. PALPA claims 120 Pakistani pilots serving outside of Pakistan have lost their jobs and many within Pakistan remains suspended pending appeal.
CONCLUSION
Live and Let’s Fly has reached out several times to PIA for comment and has not received a reply. While it would be premature to say the “fake” pilot scandal was not a scandal at all, the exoneration of 58 pilots certainly advances a narrative that Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan spoke out too soon when leveling accusations that literally rocked the aviation world.
> Read More on PIA:
- Pakistan International Airlines 777 Business Class Manchester To New York
- Pakistan International Airlines A320 Crashes, Killing 97 Onboard
- Where The Two Survivors Were Sitting When PIA Airbus A320 Crashed
- Another A320 Scare On Pakistan International Airlines
- Report: Careless Pilots Blamed For PIA A320 Crash
- It’s Time To Blacklist Pakistan International Airlines…
- Exclusive: A “Fake” Pilot From Pakistan International Airlines Speaks Out
- European Union Bans Pakistan International Airlines – Is Canada Next?
- United States Bans Pakistan International Airlines
- How Pakistan International Airlines Plans To Skirt Blacklist
- Pakistani Pilot Probe Spreads To United Arab Emirates
- Another Scandal Rocks Pakistan International Airlines
image: Aeroprints / Wikimedia Commons
The irony of this case is delightful, considering that Ghulam Sarwar Khan spent 7 years litigating accusations that he had falsified his own college degree before finally prevailing.