A Malaysian court on Wednesday ordered the release of a Pakistani passenger plane, which was held back in Kuala Lumpur over a lease dispute two weeks ago.
The plane was seized by the Malaysian authorities after a local court allowed the plane’s Dublin-based lessor, Peregrine Aviation Charlie Limited, to keep it grounded, following the non-payment of $14 million dues by state-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
The PIA, which had termed the Malaysian court’s judgment “one-sided” said it could not pay the dues on time because of a growing financial crunch caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
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Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) told the London High Court on Friday last week said that it has paid nearly around $7 million dues to Peregrine Aviation Charlie Limited for the two jets leased to it by AerCap
The hearing was related to the case of confiscation of PIA’s Boeing-777 by the Malaysian Authorities on Friday last week at Kuala Lumpur airport on the directives of the Malaysian Court.
The hearing was related to the case of confiscation of PIA’s Boeing-777 by the Malaysian Authorities on Friday last week at Kuala Lumpur airport on the directives of the Malaysian Court.https://t.co/m3xHc6Naz8
— GVS (@GVS_News) January 24, 2021
The two sides informed the Kuala Lumpur High Court that they have reached an “amicable” settlement to the dispute, the Edge Markets publication quoted airline’s counsel Kwan Will Sen as saying.
“With this, the two Boeing aircraft operated by PIA would be released with immediate effect,” Kwan told the publication.
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Abdullah Hafeez, the airline’s spokesman, also confirmed the development. The plane will be brought back to Pakistan as a regular flight on Jan. 29, Hafeez told Anadolu Agency. The two jets were leased to the PIA in 2015.
Anadolu with additional input by GVS News Desk