March 28, 2024 Lengthy article.
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
www.ctvnews.ca
''Why did they flee?
Khan said he could only speculate as to why the flight attendants would flee.
The Canadian government underscored the volatile situation in Pakistan, warning in a travel advisory of a "high threat of terrorism," along with threats of civil unrest, sectarian violence and kidnapping.
''Khan called the flight attendants' disappearances a "PR crisis" for PIA that is "bad" for business amid a crew shortage.
The airline is in talks with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and Pakistani law enforcement agencies to potentially create a "legal safeguard" to curtail flight crew from seeking asylum, he said''.
"The security situation is fragile and unpredictable," the Canadian travel advisory reads. "Incidents are typically attributed to extremism, ethnic divisions, sectarian strife, regional political disputes and the situation in neighbouring Afghanistan."
The airline was unable to reach the flight attendant on her cellphone or hotel landline so, Khan says, they asked hotel management to check if she was OK.''
"When the crew went there, she left her uniform there with a note saying, 'Thank you PIA,'" Khan said, which he interpreted as a genuine sentiment of gratitude for her more than 15 years of service with PIA rather than a taunt.
Khan said the crew members who disappeared were "family values people" who had good careers in Pakistan.''
nowtoronto.com
