Government to review open sky policy and air service agreements

The government of Pakistan has decided to review National Aviation Policy on urgent basis as “open skies clauses and associated Air Service Agreements (ASA) of the National Aviation Policy including routes, slots and capacity accorded to foreign airlines have been discriminatory and disadvantageous to the national flag carrier.” The Aviation division is tasked to undertake this review and come up with a beter policy.

This is one of the major issues facing Pakistan’s domestic airlines, as they struggle to compete. Time and again this issue was raised. But the PML-N government failed to address it, rather aggravated the situation by implementing NAP 2015. A policy that harmed the domestic aviation sector more than anything else.

• Ex Air Force bureaucrat Khaqan Murtaza appointed as DG Civil Aviation
• Giving additional charge of DG CAA to Secretary, Aviation Division was “illegal” and “the statement made by the Minister for Aviation on the floor of the National Assembly was not correct”
• The government of Pakistan giving additional charge of DG CAA to Secretary Aviation again is violation of law
• 12 months, 3 advertisements, 600 candidates and still Aviation Division has failed to appoint a DG CAA.
• PIA ATR crashed due to 3 “latent technical factors”

The government also decided to review the taxes and duties levied by PCAA on domestic airlines for use of PCAA facilities. It was deemed too high as compared to other countries in the region and CAA was tasked to review this. CAA is tasked to review and rationalise it for the comfort of doing business in the Aviation Industry.

The minister for revenue Hammad Azhar is going to review the tax regime for the airline industry and for air travel in Pakistan, which is considered very high.