ISLAMABAD: Family on Monday paid tribute to late Pakistani pilot Captain Fazal Ghani Mian, the former chief pilot of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) who operated the first-ever Emirates flight from Dubai to Karachi 36 years ago, saying he had remained hopeful through his life that Pakistan’s national carrier would regain its past glory.
Mian died last week in Islamabad after a month-long illness following COVID-19. He was delegated by Pakistan International Airlines in 1985 to set up Dubai’s flagship carrier Emirates, now the world’s largest international passenger airline. The first Emirates flight, EK600, took off from Dubai to Karachi on October 25, 1985.
For years now, PIA has been hemorrhaging hundreds of millions of dollars a year while being pummeled by competition from sleek Gulf giants like Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways. Once the pride of the nation, the airline, like the Pakistani economy, has relied on bailouts to stay in the air in recent years. 
But Main was “very hopeful that PIA will gain its glory back,” his daughter Lubna Ghani Hayauddin told Arab News at the family home in Islamabad: “He always used to say to everyone that troubles in PIA are temporary and it will again become glorious.”
“My father was a patriotic Pakistani. He loved both Emirates and PIA till the last breath,” she added. 

Mian’s wife Touhida Ghani described her husband as a “kind” man who was equally committed to work and family.
“We got married in 1962 and initially it was difficult to manage as he used to be away on flights for days but later I got used to it,” she said. “He taught me the true meaning of life and used to guide me at every step.”
Talking about the Emirates project, Ghani said her husband had always been very proud of Emirates’ success.
“He worked very hard all of his life,” she said. “Especially when he was working on the Emirates airline project, he used to work for hours and hours. Sometimes he was unable to visit us [from Dubai] even on weekends.”
But a commensurate family man, Mian turned down the offer when Emirates gave him a lucrative job and stayed on with PIA, choosing to maintain Pakistan as his base, his wife added. 

Capt. (R) Kamal Alkarimi, who worked with Ghani in PIA for more than 35 years, said he was a “true professional” who always put organization and country first. 
“He was a dedicated Pakistani, sincere friend and loved his work. Today’s pilots and professionals should follow in his footsteps to bring back the glorious time of the national carrier,” Alkarimi added. 
Mian’s son Haider Ghani Mian thanked the United Arab Emirates embassy for remembering the services of his father but said no official from the Pakistan government had as yet visited the family for condolences.
“I am thankful to UAE embassy as they paid tribute to my father and always remembered his services for Emirates. They used to send him gifts every year,” he said.
“I wanted to be a pilot like him because I traveled a lot with him. He was my mentor,” Mian’s son said. “He always gave very solid advice and informed me about the risks of being a pilot. I had changed my mind after graduation and he respected it.”

Mian’s other daughter Farah Mohsin Hameed also paid high tribute to her father: “I am so proud of my father. We did not have to worry about anything. He used to plan everything for us but never imposed his decisions.”