New advertisement campaign, launched by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), that featured an image of a plane heading towards the Eiffel Tower in Paris France, accompanied by the phrase “Paris, we’re coming today,” has sparked major international outrage due to its unsettling resemblance to the events of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the USA.
Apparently, the purpose of the new ad, that depicted an aircraft appearing to approach the Eiffel Tower in Paris, was to commemorate the resumption of flights to the French capital after a four-year pause caused by issues related to the licensing of PIA pilots, but it immediately ignited widespread ridicule on social media.
One user commented, “All they needed to add was Allahu Akbar,” while numerous others criticized its alarming similarity to the 9/11 attacks, during which Islamist terrorists targeted the World Trade Center and the Pentagon using hijacked commercial airliners.
Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the September 11 attacks on the USA, was located and eliminated by United States special forces in Pakistan in 2011. Meanwhile, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the principal coordinnator of the hijackings, was apprehended in Pakistan in 2003.
Omar Quraishi, a former adviser to the ex-foreign minister of Pakistan, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, wrote: “Who designed this? Who or which agency manages its social media accounts? Did the airline management not vet this?”
“Do they not know that PIA is an airline owned by a country often accused of supporting terrorism?” he added.
The latest ad blunder is not the first instance of a seemingly foreboding PR campaign by PIA. In 1979, the airline promoted its Paris-New York route by placing a half-page advertisement in France’s Le Point newspaper, which depicted the shadow of a Boeing 747 cast upon the glass facade of the renowned Twin Towers.
In more recent times, the airline faced ridicule when its ground staff performed a goat sacrifice on the tarmac for good fortune prior to a domestic flight in 2016. At that time, the airline maintained that the actions of its staff were taken independently and that such ritualistic slaughter does not align with company policy.
In the meantime, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar criticized Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) for its “foolishness” in releasing the promo ad and told the country’s parliament that Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has already ordered an investigation into PIA dubious advertisement campaign.