Pakistan’s struggling airlines saw an opportunity to expand their operations Wednesday after the United Kingdom removed the country from its Air Safety List.
The move paves the way for companies to explore direct flights the British cities with a large diaspora community.
The decision allows Pakistan International Airlines and other carriers to apply for permission to operate direct flights to Britain.
The development came months after the European Union (EU) lifted the ban on PIA and other operators from flying to different European destinations.
The move is expected to ease travel for the estimated 1.6 million people of Pakistani origin living in the U.K., as well as support trade ties between the two countries, the British High Commission in Islamabad said.
Pakistan’s struggling airlines saw an opportunity to expand their operations Wednesday after the United Kingdom removed the country from its Air Safety List.
After a sustained, independent, and technically driven process, the UK’s Air Safety Committee has lifted its restrictions on Pakistani carriers. It will take time for flights to resume, but this is an important step, and a testament to @official_pcaa’s air safety improvements.
— Jane Marriott (@JaneMarriottUK) July 16, 2025
Bilateral trade between both countries currently stands at £4.7 billion, with the UK ranked as Pakistan’s third-largest trading partner.
Pakistan was first added to the UK’s Air Safety List in 2021 over serious safety concerns. Since then, officials on both sides have worked together to address the shortcomings, the statement added.
The U.K. and Europe had banned direct flights by the Pakistani airlines following the fake pilot license scandal. In 2020, the then-aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan claimed that pilots were operating planes with fake licenses. This was his response after PIA’s Airbus A- 320s crashed in Karachi, killing nearly 100 people.
Although the removal from the list marks a significant milestone, Pakistani carriers will still need to secure individual operating permits from the UK Civil Aviation Authority before flights can resume.
https://viewsnews.brandbrilliance.org/virgin-atlantic-starts-operations-britain-pakistan/
British High Commissioner to Pakistan Jane Marriott welcomed the removal of the ban on Pakistani airlines.
“I’m grateful to aviation experts in the UK and Pakistan for their collaborative work to meet international safety standards.
“While flights won’t resume overnight, I look forward to flying with a Pakistani airline once services restart,” she added.
Wednesday’s decision, announced on Wednesday by the U.K.’s Air Safety Committee, follows sustained technical cooperation with Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) and a thorough review of aviation safety standards.
https://viewsnews.brandbrilliance.org/pia-resume-direct-flights-u-s-april-2020/
Following the removal of the ban, PIA operated its first direct flight from Islamabad to Paris this year in January.
While several private Pakistani airlines operate domestically and on regional routes, primarily to the Middle East, PIA has historically been the only carrier to operate long-haul flights to Britain and the European Union.
PIA had previously estimated an annual revenue loss of around 40 billion rupees ($144 million) due to the ban. The airline has long considered the U.K. routes, including London, Manchester, and Birmingham, among its most profitable, and holds sought-after landing slots at London’s Heathrow Airport that could become active again.
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Muhammad Luqman is Associate Editor at Views News Now. He writes on wide-ranging issues including economy, South Asia, the Middle East, agriculture, economy and innovation. Luqman has worked some of the leading news organizations and won acclaim for his original and research-based works.
