Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Tuesday said it has restored flight operations with some alternative arrangements after delays due to what it called a “strike” by the Society of Aeronautical Engineers of Pakistan (SAEP).
However, the SAEP stated that there was no strike on its part and that the engineers were only complying with mandatory safety and certification protocols.
PIA flight operations were disrupted across the country last night after the engineering group refused to issue clearances to the planes, saying they could not compromise on travel safety.
The PIA said in a statement today: “A deregistered entity, SAEP, in order to put pressure on the management, attempted to stop operations during the late hours of yesterday (Monday) night with its nefarious design of sabotaging the privatization process.”
He stated that the PIA management team, along with key officials from the engineering department, responded immediately to the situation.
“Using alternative means and working tirelessly day and night, [the airline] restored operations, thus mitigating the impact of flights already delayed for subsequent operations,” the statement added.
The airline assured the public that “flight operations are being fully restored and customer comfort is our top priority and that our operations run smoothly.”
According to the PIA, a total of seven flights (three from Islamabad, two from Karachi and one from Lahore and Sialkot) departed after delays ranging from four to 14 hours.
Five flights were canceled due to cargo readjustment and alternatives were offered to passengers.
For the past two and a half months there had been a protest in which engineers tied black ribbons around their arms while working.
However, the situation worsened when SAEP members stopped authorizing planes, disrupting flight operations and leaving hundreds of passengers stranded at the airports of Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.
SAEP Chairman Abdullah Jadoon said Sunrise that more than 570 aeronautical engineers associated with the PIA were on strike and vowed to continue it until their demands were met.
Earlier today, a senior member of the SAEP had denied that the society was holding a strike. They insisted that engineers only followed mandatory safety and certification protocols based on their responsibilities.
“Unfortunately, instead of addressing long-pending professional and financial concerns, PIA management has chosen to label legal compliance as disruption, which is misleading,” the SAEP member said.
A spokesperson for the PIA had stated that the SAEP had no legal status and alleged that the main objective of this movement was to sabotage the privatization of the PIA, which was in its final phase.
Similar delays have occurred at almost all major airports in the past two months due to protests by engineers seeking a pay rise and other issues.
Flights affected
According to the details provided by the PIA, the flights that departed after the adjustment of the revised slots and crew arrangement included the following:
Delayed departure:
- PK747 Lahore to Medina, with 316 passengers after 14 hours of delay
- PK761 Karachi to Jeddah, with 160 passengers after 12 hours delay
- PK300 Karachi to Islamabad, with 139 passengers after 4 hours delay
- PK741 Islamabad to Medina, with 305 passengers after 6 hours of delay
- PK233 Islamabad to Dubai, with 162 passengers after 9 hours delay
- PK245 Islamabad to Dammam, with 180 passengers after 7 hours of delay
- PK755 Sialkot to Riyadh, with 142 passengers after 7 hours of delay
Punctual:
- PK783 Karachi to Toronto with 104 passengers
- PK701 Islamabad to Manchester with 329 passengers
On the other hand, five flights were canceled due to load readjustment and alternatives were offered to passengers.
