The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has intensified its push to lift the ban on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flights to the United Kingdom, following the resumption of European flights, the national media reported on Thursday, citing sources.
According to a report by ARY News on Thursday, sources indicate that the UK Department for Transport (DfT) will visit Pakistan in mid-January to evaluate the situation.
PIA aims to resume direct flights to the UK by February. As part of these efforts, a UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) team is scheduled to conduct a safety audit in Karachi from January 15 to 17.
Meanwhile, the CAA has reached out to UK aviation authorities, seeking an exemption from the security audit. The Department for Transport (DfT) has shown readiness to approve the exemption, expressing confidence in the manual report submitted by Pakistani authorities.
A British aviation team will conduct a formal safety audit of both Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which have already undergone previous audits. The Director-General of CAA, Nadir Shafi, is personally overseeing the teams involved in efforts to resume flights to the UK.
The CAA is also set to brief the DfT delegation, while PIA plans to start direct flights to Manchester in the initial phase. Flights to London and other cities will follow in the second phase. PIA will use its Boeing 777 aircraft for flights to the UK and Europe.
