Last Updated on July 19, 2020, 7:04 PM AST by Anthony Morris
PIA or the Pakistan International Airlines sacked seven of its pilots on Saturday after their licenses were cancelled by the CAA or the Civil Aviation Authority earlier in the day.
Local media reported that an official from the PIA confirmed that the pilots, including an air hostess, have been sent their termination letters.
The license revocation letters were issued by the CAA director-general after the approval of the government.
The national carrier official said that the Airline Transport Pilot licences of 48 PIA pilots were suspended earlier without show cause notices while they were given two weeks to file their reply. Earlier, in 2019 the PIA had already grounded 17 pilots.
The federal aviation minister said in the last week of June that 262 or 30% of Pakistan’s 860 pilots had “fake” licenses. Sharing details of what he called corruption within the CAA, the minister said that 34 pilots did not appear in any one out of the eight exams, which are required to qualify for a licence.
Meanwhile, 28 were suspected of having fake degrees. His pronouncements came to the fore weeks after PK-8303, which was operated by Pakistan International Airlines, crashed in Karachi and killed 97 people.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
