Pilots challenge govt’s ‘flawed’ list on licences

IHC to hear petition seeking aviation minister’s removal

ISLAMABAD:

Pilots and their union have raised questions about a government list of 262 pilots with “dubious” credentials, saying it is full of discrepancies.

“It contains names of highly educated and qualified pilots who have passed all the tests,” Pakistan Airlines Pilots Association (PALPA) President Chaudhry Salman told Reuters. “We want a fair and impartial resolution to this matter.”

Earlier addressing a news conference in Karachi, the PALPA president maintained that the list issued by government was baseless. “We reserve the right to file a defamation suit against the minister,” he added. “We aren’t protecting the 141 pilots but fighting a war for our survival.”

Salman further claimed that the aviation minister raised the issue because he wanted the divert attention from the May 22 air crash in Karachi.

He pointed out that minister’s allegations had put the jobs of the Pakistani pilots working across the world at risk.

After the minister’s revelation, international airlines have initiated investigations against Pakistani employees.

The head of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has ordered a suspension for all Pakistani pilots working for Vietnamese airlines.

Qatar Airways and Oman Air have also compiled lists of Pakistani pilots, engineers and ground-handling staff.

Abdul Sattar Khokhar, a spokesperson for the aviation ministry, said full details of the discrepancies were not available. “The issue is being sorted out in consultation with airlines and civil aviation authorities.”

Last week, Federal Minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan announced the grounding of 262 airline pilots suspected of dodging their exams, a move that caused global concern.

The minister said the pilots included 141 from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), nine from Air Blue, 10 from Serene Airline, and 17 from Shaheen Airlines.

The PIA said the list showed discrepancies once the airlines received it. Thirty-six of the 141 had either retired or moved out, it said. Air Blue said seven of the pilots on the list no longer worked for the airline.

The action on the “dubious” licences was prompted by the preliminary report on an airliner crash in Karachi that killed 97 people last month. It found the plane’s pilots failed to follow standard procedures and disregarded alarms.

Separately, the Islamabad High Court will hear a petition seeking Sarwar’s removal from the post of the aviation minister.

The petitioner, Advocate Tariq Asad, has contended that the minister falsely accused 262 pilots of having dubious credentials.

He added that the minister had made an irresponsible statement in the National Assembly and that was why he should be removed from his post.

The petitioner also demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter.