KARACHI: A suspension of the authorisation for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to operate in Europe is expected to be lifted in June as a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) team is expected to visit to review safety concerns.
The agency had placed the ban on the national airline, initially for a period of six months, in June 2020 in a move following the grounding of 262 pilots after they were suspected of cheating on mandatory licence tests.
In January, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) gave the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) the all-clear in terms of resolving significant safety concerns.
The EASA delegation will visit PCAA and PIA offices during their visit to carry out a safety audit of the two agencies prior to lifting the suspension.
Earlier this week, the ICAO expressed satisfaction over safety measures taken by PCAA, leading to the removal of the agency from the list of the safety-significant concern (SSC).
