Aviation Committee Cracks Down on Flying Club, Grills PIA Over Delays and Fare Discrepancies
Flying High on Controversy: Multan Flying Club's Registration Lapses Amidst Fee Refund Row, PIA CEO Summoned Over Operational Issues
Islamabad : 3rd meeting of the Standing Committee on Aviation was held today under the Chairmanship of Nawabzada Iftikhar Ahmed Khan Babar, MNA in Committee Room of Civil Aviation Authority/Islamabad International Airport, Islamabad.
Multan Flying Club failed to get renew its registration leaving students’ future uncertain amidst fee refund controversy
Committee calls PIA CEO over Recent Operational Issues, Fare Discrepancies, Increasing Flight Delays and Cancellations and Aero-Medical Staff Appointments,
2. The Committee was informed that Management of M/s Multan Flying Club (MFC) was registered till 31st December, 2023. On October, 2023 they applied for the renewal of the said licence w.e.f. 1st January, 2024 with incomplete documents. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) served many reminders to MFC to address the same at the earliest but no response received. On 21st May 2024 CAA received complaints from the associated students as well as the employees of M/S MFC to refund/ settlement of their outstanding amounts (Rs. 38,871,720) against MFC. The future of flying students associated with MFC is now at risk as the club allegedly refused to refund the fees collected from students, further complicating their education prospects. The Committee expressed its concern on future of students and directed the CAA to summon the higher management of MFC in the next meeting of the Committee.
3. During the meeting, the Committee discussed the importance of maintaining stringent standards for the appointment of aero-medical staff to ensure the safety and well-being of passengers. Additionally, the Committee highlighted growing public concerns regarding the significant variation in domestic airfares of PIA with respect to other airlines, emphasizing the need for clarity and fairness in pricing.
4. The Committee noted a sharp increase in flight delays and cancellations by PIA, causing widespread inconvenience and frustration among passengers. These operational challenges come at a time when discussions about the possible privatization of PIA are gaining momentum, further complicating the situation. The Committee decided to call the CEO of PIA for the upcoming meeting to address the above issues.
5. The following MNAs namely Mr. Aqeel Malik, Dr. Darshan, Choudhary Iftikhar Nazir, Mr. Ramesh Lal, Mr. Abdul Aleem Khan, Ms. Munaza Hassan, Mr. Saleem Rehman, Mr. Ihsan Ullah Virk, Mr. Muhammad Saad Ullah, Mr. Muhammad Abdul Ghaffar Watto, Mr. Muhammad Azhar Khan Leghari, Mr. Nauman Islam Shaikh, Jam Abdul Karim Bijar and Asif Khan besides the officials of the Ministry and its attached departments attended the meeting.
