RAWALPINDI: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has revoked permission to a private airline for flying from Dubai to Peshawar after it carried on Sunday 27 passengers who had tested positive for Covid-19.

It was the second time this month that the government’s coronavirus SOPs had been violated by the private airline after it transported 24 coronavirus positive patients on May 10 from Dubai to Peshawar.

CAA spokesman Saad Bin Ayub said the National Command and Control Centre informed the authority that the private airline had again been found breaching Covid-19 protocols by bringing 27 passengers from Sharjah to Peshawar on May 16 who had tested positive via Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) on May 16.

He said the airline’s negligence had not only endangered the lives of other passengers travelling in the flight in addition to the healthcare workers and airport staff, but also caused the spread of the pandemic.

A private airline carried 27 Covid-positive passengers on Sunday

He said that other airlines had been strictly following the Covid-19 protocols.

Following the serious violations of Covid-19 protocols, the CAA decided to revoke the authorisation issued to the airline’s flight PA611 Dubai-Peshawar on May 17. It also warned that any further violation shall entail more stringent penal action.

On May 1, the CAA had issued fresh operational protocols for inbound passenger flights, directing all international airlines to ensure that standard operating procedures were followed in letter and spirit by all passengers and crew.

The CAA had said that all passengers would also be required to undergo RAT upon arrival at the respective airports in Pakistan and non-compliance shall result in strict punitive action.

The measures have been taken to ensure safety of passengers and crew (cockpit & cabin) and to minimise the risks associated with Covid-19.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2021