Flight attendants from one airline keep vanishing after landing in Toronto
At least four flight attendants working for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) have reportedly vanished after landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport over the past year, according to several local outlets.
The most recent incident reportedly involved a flight attendant who arrived in Toronto from Lahore via PIA flight PK-784, but "slipped away" prior to their scheduled return flight.
"The flight of the national flag carrier had to return to Islamabad without the crew member," sources familiar with the matter told Pakistani media outlet ARY News.
This isn't the first instance of a PIA flight attendant vanishing after landing in Toronto, with the total count of missing crew members now totalling four in 2023.
Another flight attendant from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has reportedly disappeared in Canada.
— The Pakistan Affairs (@ThePKAffairs) December 4, 2023
The PIA steward had arrived in Canada on PIA flight PK-784 but failed to report for duty on the return flight, raising suspicions about his disappearance.#PIA #employee pic.twitter.com/h9aV39KTCG
On Oct. 14, PIA crew member Ijaz Shah touched down at Toronto Pearson Airport, but never showed up on his scheduled return flight to Islamabad to days later. The crew member was subsequently dismissed from the airline, and was reported to the Canadian Border Services Agency.
In November, two other flight attendants reportedly vanished after arriving in Toronto from Islamabad, prompting the airline to implement stricter regulations for flight crew members travelling to Canada and European countries.
Back in August, the airline's employees protested their working conditions, lack of a pay raise, and PIA's privatization plan. While the airline agreed to discuss a pay raise with employees, it did not make any commitments regarding its privatization plan.
According to Canada's Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, foreign nationals need not obtain a temporary resident visa if they seek to enter and remain in Canada as a flight crew member.
blogTO reached out to Pakistan International Airlines for comment on these incidents but did not receive a response in time for this article's publication.
