Air Blue tragedy: Citizen’s petition blames CAA’s laziness for crash

Calls for inquiry into the role of the aviation regulatory body.

KARACHI: The hearing of a petition into the alleged violation and compromise in aviation regulations in the aftermath of the Air Blue crash in Islamabad, in 2010, was adjourned indefinitely by a division bench of the Sindh High Court on Thursday after the counsel for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) assured the court that an inquiry would be conducted.

The petition was filed by Syed Naseem Ahmed, expressing concern over the safety of Pakistani airlines. He said that the CAA compromised on aviation safety regulations and because of the lax attitude of the body as a regulatory authority, the number of air crashes had increased drastically. Ahmed also blamed the CAA for the Air Blue crash which took the lives of 152 people. He requested that the court constitute a board of inquiry under Section 284 to probe the regulatory failure of the CAA.

The CAA’s counsel and deputy attorney general of the federal government assured the court that a copy of the notification calling for an inquiry would be submitted to the bench in two weeks.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 10^th, 2012.