Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) faced major operational disruption after its aircraft engineers halted work in protest, resulting in significant delays and cancellations of dozens of domestic and international flights.
According to sources, the engineers suspended aircraft clearance in response to a dispute with the management, partially grounding the national airline’s operations and causing severe inconvenience to passengers across the country.
A PIA spokesperson stated that flights PK-245 to Dammam and PK-741 to Jeddah departed from Islamabad with a six-hour delay. The Karachi–Jeddah flight PK-761 was delayed by ten hours, while PK-283 from Peshawar to Dubai managed to take off after a one-hour delay.
The Karachi–Lahore flight PK-302 was delayed for 14 hours and is now scheduled to depart at 10:45 PM. The Karachi–Islamabad flight PK-300 also remains grounded despite passengers having completed check-in procedures.
Flights PK-601 and PK-602 from Islamabad to Gilgit were similarly affected. Overall, the schedules of more than 55 domestic and international flights have been disrupted. According to the flight schedule, two Karachi–Skardu flights and one Lahore–Karachi flight were cancelled, along with Lahore–Muscat flights PK-329 and PK-330.
The spokesperson added that the airline has dispatched four flights through alternative arrangements and is working on additional measures to restore operations. He stated that no group would be allowed to obstruct operational activity under any circumstances.
Meanwhile, the PIA CEO has ordered strict action against the protesting engineers. According to the spokesperson, the Society of Aircraft Engineers of Pakistan holds no legal status, and the protest appears to be aimed at undermining the airline’s privatization process.
He further said that abandoning duties under the guise of safety concerns seemed to be part of a coordinated attempt to disrupt operations. With the Essential Services Act in place at PIA, legal action will be taken against anyone involved in strikes or work stoppages.
