Serene Air’s revival raises hope, but airline’s future still in doubt
KARACHI – Serene Air’s flight operation was suspended as the privately-owned Pakistani airline was grounded by debt and disrepair.
Over weekend, Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) temporarily lifted grounding of SereneAir, allowing it to resume limited flight operations for just two weeks. The lifeline comes as thousands of stranded Pakistanis in Saudi Arabia await rescue flights home.
Only days ago, SereneAir’s future looked bleak after aviation officials suspended its Air Operator Certificate, citing a complete lack of serviceable aircraft. Once boasting a modern fleet of Boeing 737-800s and Airbus A330-200s, the airline’s planes were left idle amid mounting financial troubles and crippling maintenance delays, forcing a total shutdown of all domestic and international routes.
Pakistan’s aviation regulator now offered airline a last-minute reprieve but SereneAir can only operate special repatriation flights to bring people back from Saudi Arabia, and must repair its grounded fleet and meet all safety standards before it can dream of a full comeback.
The airline was once promising private carrier that started operations in 2017, but its rapid downfall speaks of ongoing crisis in Pakistan’s aviation sector, as prominent airlines like Shaheen Air filed for bankruuptcy.
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