Pakistani aviation authority hopes to resume licensing in February

Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) hopes it can resume licensing pilots in February with the release of an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) audit after a scandal over fake licenses, an authority official said. The ICAO advised Pakistan in September 2020 to undertake immediate corrective action and suspend the issue of any new pilot licenses after false licenses came to light following the crash of a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane in May that year, in which 97 people wer killed. A nine-member ICAO team carried out an audit in Pakistan for 10 days that concluded on Friday. “We are hopeful we will resume issuance of licensing following the release of release of the ICAO audit report expected in February,” Khaqan Murtaza, director general of the PCAA, told reporters on Monday. The pilot licence scandal tainted Pakistan’s aviation industry and hurt flag carrier PIA, which was barred from flying to Europe and the United States.<br/>