Positive developments have been made towards the restoration of direct flights between Pakistan and the United Kingdom (UK) as the British Department for Transport (DfT) has scheduled a visit to Pakistan.
A delegation from the British Department for Transport (DfT) will visit Pakistan from August 1 to August 4 to conduct inspections of flight arrangements and security measures. Led by the head of the agency’s aviation security, the delegation will inspect passengers’ check-in, security search, immigration, and boarding processes at Pakistani airports.
In addition to the DfT delegation, a team from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is expected to visit Pakistan in September. The EASA delegation will conduct a physical audit of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Clearing this audit successfully could lead to the reversal of the ban on PIA flights to European Union countries.
After a three-year ban, Pakistan’s national carrier, PIA, is hopeful to resume direct flights to European countries pending clearance from EASA. This comes after the European Union’s Aviation Safety Agency revoked PIA’s authorization to fly to the bloc in 2020 due to a fake pilot license scandal in Pakistan.
Earlier, Aviation Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique announced that PIA is likely to resume flights to the UK within the next three months. New legislation has removed the final hurdle for PIA’s operations to the United Kingdom. However, it’s important to note that the resumption of services to Britain does not include other European destinations at this time.