Pakistan, June 20 -- A Pakistan International Airlines flight departed from Lahore to Paris this week for the first time in five years. Predictably, it was framed as a breakthrough. In reality, it marks a limited correction: an overdue restoration of a route lost to scandal, not a signal of institutional renewal.

The route was suspended in 2020 following a tragic crash in Karachi. In the immediate aftermath, the then aviation minister made a sweeping, unsubstantiated claim on the floor of Parliament: that hundreds of Pakistani pilots were flying on dubious licenses. The statement triggered an international backlash. European regulators promptly banned PIA from their airspace, and global carriers distanced themselves from Pakistani crew. ...