ISLAMABAD: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will remain grounded in the United Kingdom, as the UK Department for Transport (DfT) confirmed on Tuesday that the air safety ban will stay in place, quashing hopes for a swift return after a four-year hiatus.
A DfT spokesperson explained that airlines must undergo a stringent process to have restrictions lifted and added that the UK Civil Aviation Authority is in ongoing discussions with Pakistani authorities regarding the matter.
The UK Air Safety List features airlines and countries that are prohibited from operating commercial flights to and from the UK due to safety concerns.
According to the official UK government website, “All air carriers certified by the authorities responsible for regulating Pakistan are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom.”
This latest development comes shortly after reports that the British Air Safety Committee had considered lifting the ban, leading to optimism among Pakistani officials.
The ban, first imposed in July 2020, followed a major scandal that exposed the operation of numerous Pakistani pilots with fraudulent licenses. The admission of this issue by the then-aviation minister, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, came after a devastating crash of a PIA Airbus A-320 in Karachi, which claimed nearly 100 lives.
In the aftermath of the scandal, the UK, European Union, and the United States imposed bans on PIA, resulting in significant financial losses for the airline, with an estimated Rs40 billion ($144 million) in annual revenue lost.
Despite this setback, PIA celebrated a modest achievement in January 2025 by resuming direct flights to Europe, with a flight from Islamabad to Paris.
Abdullah Hafeez Khan, a spokesperson for PIA, shared the airline’s ambition, stating that once the DfT clears the ban, the airline is eager to reintroduce services to London, Manchester, and Birmingham, which would be in high demand.
In the meantime, the Pakistani government has moved forward with plans to privatize PIA. The Associated Press of Pakistan reported that a fast-tracked privatization plan was approved in a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Senator Ishaq Dar in Islamabad.
The Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCOP) has greenlighted the plan, which includes selling a 51-100% stake in the airline, along with management control. According to the report, Deputy Prime Minister Dar emphasized the government’s commitment to privatizing PIA to maximize its potential and reduce the financial burden on the national treasury.
