Islamabad, January 30, 2025: The federal government has formed a fact-finding committee to investigate the motives behind former aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar’s 2020 statement, which led to a years-long flight suspension of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in multiple countries.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a federal cabinet meeting in Islamabad, where members discussed the severe repercussions of Sarwar’s remarks, which damaged Pakistan’s aviation industry and the national carrier’s reputation.
During the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in 2020, Sarwar claimed that nearly one-third of Pakistani pilots held fake licenses and later added that the credentials of 262 pilots were “dubious.”
His statement came just one month after a PIA Airbus A-320 crashed into a Karachi neighborhood, killing nearly 100 people. In response, the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK), and United States (US) banned PIA flights in June 2020, further deepening the crisis of the already debt-ridden airline.
After more than four years of efforts, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) finally lifted the ban in November 2024, allowing PIA to resume flights to Europe earlier this month. The first flight to Paris marked a major milestone in restoring international operations.
The federal cabinet deemed Sarwar’s remarks “irresponsible and speculative,” stating that they caused serious financial losses to the exchequer and harmed the country’s aviation credibility. The newly formed fact-finding committee will investigate the motives behind Sarwar’s statement and will assess the financial losses suffered by PIA and the national economy.
During the session, the cabinet also approved the Off-The-Grid Captive Power Plants Ordinance 2025 to address energy challenges. Cabinet also approved the Middle East Green Initiative, aiming to restore 200 acres of land and plant 50 billion trees.
