Silent treatment: BKIA cancels access cards of PIA employees

Many passengers find themselves in limbo

PESHAWAR: Bacha Khan International Airport (BKIA) has cancelled the apron cards of Pakistan International Airline employees.

Insiders familiar with the matter told The Express Tribune on Friday the cards were cancelled amid protests over the privatisation of the national carrier.

The cards provide access to the area of an airport where aircraft are parked, unloaded or loaded, refueled, or boarded.

Inconvenienced

A majority of passengers who hold return tickets to travel abroad on Pakistan International Airline (PIA) flights found themselves in limbo as employees of the national carrier have continue to protest for a fourth day.

Insiders familiar with the matter told The Express Tribune, a large number of passengers – many of whom are labourers who are expected to travel to other countries for their jobs – are confused about whom to approach to have their grievances addressed. There are countless others whose visas are likely to expire soon and need to return home.

Several people gathered outside the PIA booking office in the city on Friday to take up the matter with the airline’s officials. However, the officials were in no position to help them out as they were already holding a sit-in at the office and had closed operations.

“My visa will expire in a few days and I don’t know what to do,” Subhanallah, a resident of Bara, Khyber Agency told The Express Tribune. “I cannot leave for Jeddah, neither can I stay here. My flight is scheduled for Monday and I am still not sure PIA staffers will resume duties by then.”

He said airline officials were not cooperating.

“I have come to know the government has announced private passenger planes will be carrying PIA passengers,” he said.

Subhanallah added that he had asked PIA officials to confirm this report but they refused to offer him any kind of explanation. Subhanallah said his visa would expire soon, which would cause financial problems for him and his family.

Asal Khan, a resident of North Waziristan Agency, told The Express Tribune he came to Peshawar late Thursday night, a day before his flight to Abu Dhabi to see if it takes off from Bacha Khan International Airport.

“My flight is scheduled for today [Saturday] at 9am,” he said. “But I still don’t know what to do. PIA officials should at least inform me if I should buy another airline’s ticket or not. This way, I won’t lose my job.”

Raheem Shah, a resident of Swabi, who was leaving for Saudi Arabia said it was difficult to convince a kafeel (who issued him work visa) about PIA’s situation.

“I request Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif to take over PIA and tell Pakistan Air Force pilots to fly PIA passenger planes,” Shah appealed, adding his visa would expire next week and something needs to be done now.

Amid speculations

The protesting PIA employees panicked after rumours about the passenger planes at BKIA being shifted to Karachi. However, Chairman Joint Action Committee Kifayatullah told The Express Tribune the planes were still at the facility but their windscreens had been covered.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 6^th, 2016.