Sir: On June 30, a young man named Syed Kashif Chisthi held hostage many citizens with automatic weapons at Khayaban-e-Ittehad in the DHA area of Karachi for almost half an hour before he was overpowered by a journalist and the Karachi police. The question arises whether this weapon was licenced and to whom it belonged, especially if owned by a family member. Was it not the responsibility of the licence holder to keep the weapon in safe custody, especially if a member of the family had a mental disorder and was an alleged drug addict? Who issued this licence and should all such licences not be cancelled?Media reports tell that Kashif Chisthi served in the national airline as a pilot instructor at a flying academy set up during the PPP’s tenure. How was such a man with serious medical issues recruited by the national airline and cleared by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to fly solo and impart training to student pilots? If these reports about Kashif are true, an investigation needs to be launched into all recruitment made after 2008. PIA needs to carry out a thorough psychiatric evaluation of all pilots, especially after the recent German Wings suicidal crash by a co-pilot suffering from serious mental illness and depression.ANEELA CHANDIOSukkur