PIA plane crash | Nearly 40% pilots in Pakistan have fake licences, are not qualified to fly, says country's aviation minister

Nearly 40 percent of civil aviation pilots in Pakistan have fake licences and are not qualified to fly, the country's aviation minister, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, has claimed according to reports.

Khan made the claims while he was addressing the national assembly. He said over 260 pilots in Pakistan paid someone else to take the exam on their behalf.

"Pilots are also appointed on a political basis, unfortunately," he said, adding that merit is "ignored" while appointing pilots in the country.

According to a Hindustan Times report, there are 850 active pilots serving various domestic airlines in Pakistan. The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), meanwhile, grounded over 150 of its pilots with "dubious licences".

These findings were revealed after an investigation was conducted following a PIA plane crash that killed nearly 100 people in Karachi last month.

The domestic flight from Lahore to Karachi crashed in a residential area near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi on May 22.

Stating that the crash was a result of human error, the minister said the pilots had ignored the instructions of the air traffic control on the height of the aircraft.

"The pilots were discussing corona throughout the flight. They were not focussed. They talked about corona [...] their families were affected. When the control tower asked him to increase the plane's height, the pilot said 'I'll manage'. There was overconfidence," the minister said.