PIA administration declared responsible for two ATR aircraft accidents

KARACHI: In an audit report, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) administration has been declared responsible for the accidents of two ATR aircraft, ARY News reported on Sunday.

The negligence of the PIA administration was traced in the accidents of two ATR planes. The airline bore a financial loss of over Rs2,000 million following the aircraft accidents at Gilgit airport.

The negligence of the PIA administration was mentioned in the audit report 2021-22 compiled by the Auditor General. The ATR accidents gave a financial dent to the national flag carrier up to Rs2,796 million.

An ATR plane met an accident at Karachi airport on November 24, 2018, causing a financial loss of Rs10.1398 million to the airline. Moreover, the airline bore over Rs10.1398 loss after a plane accident at Gilgit airport on July 20.

According to the audit report, different reasons were mentioned for the plane accidents in the investigation report compiled by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA).

The auditors said that the aviation authority mentioned the reasons for the accidents due to malfunctioning technical equipment required for maintenance, the lack of professionalism in the airline’s maintenance crew, failure in the implementation of the SOPs, flawed decisions and the role of the first officer.

The report also stated that the inquiry conducted by the PIA administration had also mentioned the mistake of the pilot. The auditors directed to share the inquiry report and disciplinary action against the responsible officials.