PIA’s first flight departs for Paris after four years

After a four-and-a-half-year break, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight on Friday departed for Paris to restart operations in European nations, ARY News reported.

PIA flight PK-749 departed for Paris from Islamabad International Airport with 300 passengers onboard including the airline’s CEO.

Minister for Defense and Aviation, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, PIA acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Khurram Mushtaq and Secretary Aviation were present at Islamabad airport to see off the passengers in a simple ceremony.

After Pakistan started looking into a scandal involving the validity of pilots’ licenses following an aircraft accident that claimed 97 lives, the European Aviation Safety Agency revoked PIA’s permit to fly in the area

Earlier, PIA Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Khurram Mushtaq announced plans to bring several grounded aircraft back into fleet operation from next year.

According to the Pakistan International Airlines CEO, in the next six months, the airline plans to activate Boeing 777 and Airbus aircraft, increasing the operational fleet to 24 aircraft.

The acting CEO, Khurram Mushtaq, revealed that out of 34 aircraft in PIA’s fleet, only 16 were operational.

However, within three weeks, the Pakistan International Airlines team worked diligently to activate three aircraft, including Boeing 777, Airbus 320, and one ATR, for aerial operations. As a result, the number of active aircraft in the fleet has now reached 19.