Bilal Ahmed 
The PIA has been given clearance by the EUAA to lift a ban that had been in force for four years thus making it possible for the PIA to begin flights to Europe again. The inaugural flight was from Islamabad to Paris on Friday carrying more than 300 people on board.
According to PIA’s Public Relations Director Mahmood Bial, the airline will be launching two flight services to Milan per week and one flight service to Frankfurt per week. The official inauguration of the service was with Punjab Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif who also announced plans to include more routes in Europe.
The European flight resumption comes after Nigeria reciprocated the gesture by removing a ban on PIA after a 2020 crash in Karachi left 97 people dead. It makes PIA the only recognized airline company that can now offer direct flights between Pakistan and the European Union.
Among the first group of passengers, there was a woman called Shumaila Rana, a 38-year-old schoolteacher from Germany who described her feelings as a mixture of joy and concern because this was her first time flying with PIA. The return of a government-owned airline to Europe is a major step in its plans for revival.
