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LAHORE- Pakistan International Airlines (PK) or PIA faces renewed safety concerns after flight PK150 landed on an unlit runway at Lahore Airport (LHE) on January 17, 2025, marking the latest incident in the airline’s troubled operational history.
According to FlightRadar24 data, the PIA flight took off from Dammam (DMM) at 11:30 PM UTC. After being airborne for approximately three hours, the flight made a diversion to Lahore.
Photo: By Anna Zvereva from Tallinn, Estonia – Pakistan International Airlines, AP-BLZ, Airbus A320-216, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=87326398Pakistan Airlines Pilots Blunder
The flight was operated by over 11-years-old Airbus A320, registered as AP-BON, and diverted to Lahore from its intended destination of Multan due to heavy fog conditions. Air traffic control cleared the aircraft to land on runway 36R, but the flight crew touched down on runway 36L, which had its lights deactivated at the time of the incident.
The airline management responded by grounding both the captain and first officer pending investigation. This incident comes at a particularly sensitive time for PIA, which recently received clearance from safety regulators to resume its European operations.
PIA’s operational challenges extend beyond this latest incident. The airline’s history includes controversial maintenance practices, such as the ritualistic sacrifice of goats, documented cases of passenger overcrowding, and the discovery of pilots operating with fraudulent licenses.
Aviation experts have highlighted significant deficiencies in cockpit resource management throughout the organization.
Photo: By Magic Aviation – Boeing 777-240/ER Pakistan International Airlines PIA AP-BHXUploaded by Dura-Ace, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24910086Financial instability compounds these operational issues. The airline struggles to maintain basic operations, including securing sufficient jet fuel for its flights.
The Pakistani government’s efforts to privatize the carrier have met fierce resistance from employees, resulting in violent protests involving law enforcement deployment of rubber bullets, water cannons, and tear gas.
The privatization initiative aims to address deep-rooted corruption within the organization, where the airline reportedly functions as a system of patronage. However, labor unions oppose these reforms, viewing them as a threat to established practices within the organization.
Photo: Aero Icarus | FlickrSimilar Incidents
Well, this is not the first time that such a wrong runway or taxiways-related blunder has been made by pilots.
In June 2024, Southwest Airlines (WN) faced a federal investigation after operating a departure from a closed runway in Portland, Maine, marking one of several recent high-profile aviation ground incidents involving major carriers.
The National Transportation Safety Board launched an investigation into Southwest Flight WN4805‘s departure from Portland International Airport. The aircraft took off from Runway 29 at 5:42 a.m. on Tuesday, despite the runway’s closure until 5:45 a.m. and the presence of a vehicle on the surface. Air traffic controllers attempted to warn the flight crew before takeoff.
In a separate incident at Boston Logan International Airport, British Airways (BA) experienced operational disruption when one of its Airbus A380 aircraft became immobilized after a navigational error during a taxi. The incident, occurring on October 18, 2024, affected one of the carrier’s multiple daily services between London Heathrow and Boston.
Air India (AI) joined the sequence of ground incidents when pilots attempted takeoff from a taxiway at Goa’s Manohar International Airport on December 5, 2024. Air traffic controllers intervened upon noticing the error, prompting the flight crew to abort their takeoff attempt immediately. The Tata Group-owned carrier operated the flight from the newly opened airport facility at Mopa.
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