The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Pakistan has become hyperactive after the recent Bhoja crash that caused around 127 causalities, but the efficiency of aviation watchdog is causing great inconvenience to passengers. Sources in the national flag carrier disclosed that the CAA on Wednesday stopped Pakistan International Airline (PIA) flight PK-709 at Lahore airport just six minutes before its departure to Manchester for a damaged seal, which was covered under Minimum Equipment List (MEL) inspection. Similarly, another flight of the national flag carrier PK-751 Lahore-Oslo was barred for the same reasons, when all passengers and cabin crew were on board.
They pointed out that both flights were Boeing 777 long haul aircraft with more than 700 passengers were covered under Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) MEL limits. They claimed the MEL being a list of equipment, which by manufacturers was declared safe to fly and not safety violation if the airline waits for the aircraft to return to base and get it rectified. They further claimed that both flights were available for the inspection since 09:00 am in the morning, but the CAA inspectors deliberately annulled the flight on the pretext of inspection when all passengers were boarded and the plane was ready to fly. “It seems the CAA wants to prove its efficiency by causing inconvenience to passengers,” they said, adding the worst part of this total mismanagement was threats of cancellation of the PIA license by the CAAA general manager airworthiness.
