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Pakistan’s national flag carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), has faced intense backlash after depicting a plane flying toward the Eiffel Tower in a promotional advertisement.
The advertisement, aimed at announcing the resumption of flights to Paris, featured the caption: “Paris, we are coming today.”
However, many on social media have accused the ad of evoking memories of the horrific September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States.
The similarity in imagery—just as planes crashed into the Twin Towers, a symbol of American pride, the Pakistani aircraft appears to be heading toward France’s iconic Eiffel Tower—has sparked outrage among millions, with critics labeling Pakistan as a breeding ground for terrorism.
One enraged user on PIA’s Twitter handle remarked, “Is this an advertisement or a threat?”
Another sharply commented, “The marketing manager of PIA should be fired.”
Within days of the ad’s release, it was viewed over 21 million times on X (formerly Twitter), and the torrent of criticism shows no signs of abating.
In response to the uproar, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered an investigation. According to a Geo News report, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has also condemned the advertisement.
Memories and Controversy of 9/11
On September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked passenger planes, crashing them into the Pentagon in Washington and the Twin Towers in New York, killing nearly 3,000 people and injuring many more. Families of the victims endured immense suffering. The event shook the entire world.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind behind the attacks, was arrested in Pakistan in 2003, drawing global criticism for the country. Similarly, Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, was killed in a U.S. operation in Pakistan in 2011, where he had been hiding. This series of events earned Pakistan the reputation of being a haven for terrorists.
Netizens claim that PIA’s advertisement evokes such horrific memories.
Pakistani journalist Omar Quraishi wrote on his X handle, “This advertisement has left me speechless. Did PIA not consider the symbolic message of the tragic 9/11 event?”
PIA’s Past Controversies
This is not PIA’s first brush with controversy. Notable examples include:
- In 1979, an advertisement featured the shadow of a plane over the Twin Towers, sparking criticism even then, with some analysts linking it to the long-planned 9/11 attack.
- In 2017, a viral photo showed a goat being sacrificed beside a plane on the runway, purportedly to “ward off bad luck,” causing widespread outrage.
- In 2019, flight attendants were given six months to lose weight or face termination, prompting backlash.
Despite the uproar, PIA has yet to comment on the Eiffel Tower-themed advertisement. However, critics insist that the airline must exercise greater caution in its future marketing campaigns.
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