ISLAMABAD – In another blow, the accounts of Pakistan International Airlines were frozen by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) once again on Wednesday.
The development coincides with the arrival of a team from the European Union’s Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) expected to inspect the airline and its possible resumption of flights to Europe and other destinations.
Besides the accounts blockage episode, the carrier suffered another setback as Pakistan State Oil threatened to stop oil supply to the airline if outstanding dues were not settled by Thursday.
Reacting to the development, a spokesman for PIA said it was unfortunate that the FBR decided to freeze its accounts at a time when a delegation from EASA was in the country to examine the airline.
The airline management was in touch with the FBR which had frozen 28 PIA accounts so far, the spokesperson was quoted as saying by Dawn.
“The management is hopeful that the issue will be resolved soon,” he stated.
It bears mentioning that the flight operation of PIA to the United Kingdom and other European destinations came to a halt in 2020 after a plane crashed in Karachi on May 22, 2020.
The restrictions by EASA were imposed after the then aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan raised concerns about the qualification of a majority of pilots operating PIA; investigations revealed that there was no truth to the allegation though the statement cost Pakistan billions of Dollars in terms of lost revenue besides tarnishing the repute of the airline.
As PIA battles challenges, a four-member EASA delegation carried out an inspection of the carrier’s operation, apron, engineering area and flight safety tools in Karachi. A day earlier, the team reviewed measures taken by the Civil Aviation Authority for pilot licenses and airworthiness.
The federal government has also decided to privatise the loss-making Pakistan International Airlines for which a consultant has also been hired and privatisation minister, Fawad Hassan Fawad has advocated the privatisation of the carrier in the backdrop of the multifaceted challenges being faced by the national carrier.
