Dawn
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17:55 Jul 16, 2025
The United Kingdom on Wednesday removed Pakistan from its Air Safety List, thereby allowing Pakistani airlines to now apply to operate flights to the UK, according to a statement from the British High Commission in Islamabad. Debt-ridden Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was banned from flying to the European Union, UK and the United States in June 2020, a month after one of its Airbus A-320s plunged into Karachi’s Model Colony, killing nearly 100 people. The ban on operating to Europe was lifted in November last year. Today’s development comes after a team from the UK Department for Transport concluded an aviation security inspection at Islamabad International Airport on Thursday, declaring Pakistan’s security arrangements “satisfactory and in line with international standards”. “Following air safety improvements, the UK’s Air Safety Committee has lifted UK restrictions on Pakistani carriers,” said a statement from the British High Commission. “Individual airline carriers will still need to apply for ...