An advert created by Pakistan International Airlines has received fierce backlash for depicting one of the company’s planes flying directly toward the Eiffel tower in an image evoking the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
The caption alongside the image reads “Paris, We’re Coming Today,” prompting some to ask if it is a threat.
Is this a threat???
— Dr. Parik Patel, BA, CFA, ACCA Esq. (@ParikPatelCFA) January 10, 2025
To make things worse for the airline, an ad made by PIA in the 1970s that depicted a plane’s shadow on the twin towers of the World Trade Center is again going viral.
This was PIA’s ad in 70s… they haven’t learnt anything yet… in which world they live????? pic.twitter.com/AdkaBBK5as
— Yasir PTI (@Yasir_PTI_UK) January 10, 2025
You can't be serious this time! This was back in 70s. Fire your designer! pic.twitter.com/ar2XkIDuHR
— Muhammad Uzair Balagamwala (@muzairb) January 10, 2025
The purpose of the new ad is to announce that PIA flights to Europe are resuming following a five year ban imposed by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) after a PIA Airbus A-320 jet crashed into a street in Karachi, killing a hundred people.
In addition to a poor safety and financial records, investigations into the incident led to accusations that many PIA pilots were flying with falsified licenses. The airline is still banned from operating in the United Kingdom and the United States.
prolly should have put the tower on the left of the shot
— tossit (r/acc/n) (@TossitRambles) January 11, 2025
Uhh, I don’t think Parisians want you to come like that.
— Manuel, mocha enjoyer (@ManuelSConde) January 10, 2025
Worse still there is kinda a twin tower theme happening with the French flag pic.twitter.com/H0XJAAWLgz
— GrokCheck ? (@GrokFact) January 10, 2025
Please don't fly into the Eiffel Tower. ?
— KU (@KU20241201) January 10, 2025
Even people in Pakistan were shocked at the imagery, with columnist and former political media adviser Omar Quraishi pondering “Did the idiot who designed this graphic not see a PIA plane heading for the Eiffel Tower? One of Europe’s iconic landmarks?”
Do they not know about the 9/11 tragedy – which used planes to attack buildings? Did they not think that this would be perceived in similar fashion? Do they not know that PIA is an airline owned by a country often accused of supporting terrorism?” Quraishi added.
I mean who is PIA’s creative agency
— omar r quraishi (@omar_quraishi) January 10, 2025
Who designed this?
Who or which agency manages its social media accounts?
Did the airline management not vet this?
Did the idiot who designed this graphic not see a PIA plane heading for the Eiffel Tower? One of Europe’s iconic landmarks… pic.twitter.com/Z0Vm7LQR51
Pakistani Finance Minister Isaq Dar also labeled the ad “stupid,” and announced that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered an investigation.
Some believe PIA used the provocative image on purpose to drive social media engagement.
This is low key marketing genius. If there’s one thing that sells besides sex, it’s terroristic threats of flying planes into national monuments.
— Darth Crypto null af (@DefNotDarth) January 10, 2025
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Islam cannot and will not blend into any other society and will remain distinct and will always strive for dominance over everyone to the point of all out war, they serve a demon god who worships death to fill in His lost ranks after the rebellion. It is a mistake to allow them into your lands as they will outbreed you and take over.
Absolute truth.
lol Thought I was going to split my spleen.
Why go to Mecca when you can take a jihad flight?
Someone pick me up off the floor, please.
I knew muslims were bonkers but this is better than Sat. night at the local comedy club.
“facing the other direction” wouldn’t have played down the perceived threat factor either since it would still have had to fly pass the tower.
Indeed, never underestimate Islams desire to destroy.
Airline sales are pushing Macron to by some surface to air.
If you bring your goat you are responsible for droppings.
Pakistan has nuclear weapons according to what I have read.
“in 2000, US military and intelligence sources estimated that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal may be as large as 100 warheads.[130] In 2018, the Federation of American Scientists estimated that the arsenal was about 120-130 warheads”
“Pakistan can be estimated to have developed operational warheads of 20 to 25 kt and 150 kt in the shape of low weight compact designs and may have 300–500 kt[134] large-size warheads”
It is but a matter of time until either Pakistan or somebody or country uses one or more devices against the infidel.
Everyone’s got nukes these days. I’ve got one rusting away in my backyard next to the old pickup.
Did they admit to creating this controversial imagery or are we all so paranoid in 2025 that a plane image flying towards Paris using Paris’s most iconic building to show the route is now open again gets people hand wringing immediately?
I think it’s passive aggressive. On purpose but not a literal threat; perhaps symbolic of what mass immigration is doing to France? The Eiffel Tower doesn’t have thousands of people in it.
I don’t know about the symbolism. But it definitely looks passive aggressive. Very much on purpose.
Yikes…
Maybe have the plane facing the other direction, unless of course they aren’t mincing words…