Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority
Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority, an autonomous agency under the administrative control of the Secretary to the Government of Pakistan for Aviation and a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization, oversaw and regulated all aspects of civil aviation in Pakistan. Its head office situated at Terminal-1 of Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The authority was bifurcated to form the Bureau of Air Safety Investigation and Pakistan Airports Authority in 2023.
Organizational structure
Civil Aviation Authority had the following divisions:- Regulatory Division
- Airports & Operations Division
- Support Division
Functions
PCAA served as the aviation regulator and at the same time the service provider functions of air navigation services and airport services. The core functions of PCAA being 'Regulatory', 'Air Navigation Services' and 'Airport Services'.Air traffic
Pakistan's airspace is divided into two flight information regions.Training
Civil Aviation Training Institute, Hyderabad worked under the Civil Aviation Authority. CATI is accredited by the International Civil Aviation Organization and is member of ICAO TRAINAIR PLUS Programme. The institute was established in 1982 to fulfill training requirement of Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority and that of the fellow countries of the region.The Civil Aviation Training Institute provides training in the disciplines of:
- Air Traffic Services
- Electronics Engineering
- Communication Operations
- Aviation Management & Administration
- Rescue and Fire Fighting Services
- Electromechanical Engineering
Aircraft Accident Investigation Board
Aircraft Accident Investigation Board, working under the Aviation Division Government of Pakistan is responsible for investigating civilian aircraft accidents and serious incidents. In this role, the AAIB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents. The investigation board is based in Rawalpindi near the now defunct Benazir Bhutto International Airport (BBIAP). It has one regional office located in Karachi near Jinnah International Airport.Air crash investigations
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Board held following the air crash investigations on direction of the federal Government of Pakistan.- PIA Flight 688 on 10 July 2006
- Airblue Flight 202 on 28 July 2010
- JS Air Flight 201 on 5 November 2010
- Bhoja Air Flight 213 on 20 April 2012
- PIA Flight 661 on 7 December 2016
- PIA Flight 8303 on 22 May 2020
Controversial
Fake license scandal
Ghulam Sarwar Khan addressed Pakistan's National Assembly stating 262 pilots in the country "did not take the exam themselves" and had paid someone else to sit it on their behalf, according to CNN, and added "they don't have flying experience". This accounts for 30% of Pakistani civilian pilots not capable of flying commercial aircraft. The investigation was the preliminary report into the PIA 8303 plane crash that killed 97 people in the southern city of Karachi on 22 May.On 30 June, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency revoked PIA's 'third part authorisation', subsequently banning PIA from flying in European airspace for 6 months from the following day, following multiple safety failings.