A plaque remaining from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem.

Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.

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Entry from March 01, 2013
Perhaps I Arrive (Pakistan International Airlines or PIA backronymic nickname)

PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) was founded in 1946 (as Orient Airways) and is the national flag carrier of Pakistan. The PIA backronymic (back acronym) nickname of “Perhaps I Arrive” was said (in 2006) to have been used in 1959. “Perhaps I’ll Arrive” was cited in print in 1960.
 
PIA has also been nicknamed “Please Inform Allah.”
 
   
Wikipedia: Pakistan International Airlines
Pakistan International Airlines (Urdu: پاکستان انٹرنیشنل ایئر لائنز‎; generally known as PIA; or Pakistan International), is the national flag carrier and a state-owned enterprise of the Government of Pakistan. Once regarded as Asia’s best airline, it is headquartered at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi and operates scheduled services to 24 domestic destinations and 38 international destinations in 27 countries across Asia, Europe and North America. Its main bases are at Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad/Rawalpindi.
       
Google Books
Flight International
Volume 78
October-December 1960
Pg. 632:
Every airline is fair bait in the cruel “initials” game but “Perhaps I’ll Arrive” and “Please Inform Allah” were gibes that with some justification were taken to heart by the airline’s new management under Air Cdre Nur Khan.
 
Google Books
In the Throne Room of the Mountain Gods
By Galen A. Rowell
San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books
1977
Pg. 49:
A man who spoke English told us that the airline’s initials, PIA, stood for “Perhaps I Arrive” or “Please Inform Allah.”
 
Google Groups: rec.humor
Fly if you dare !!!
B|rge Haga
7/2/91
(...)
PIA (Pakistan International Airlines)
- Please Inform Allah
- Panic In Air
- Perhaps I Arrive
       
Google Books
Ebb and Flow
By Omar Kureshi
Lahore: Ferozsons
2006
Pg. 5:
The wags would say that P.I.A. stood for Perhaps I’ll Arrive or Please Inform Allah.
Pg. 161:
But PIA had won the trust of the people of Pakistan. It had been quite a turnaround since 1959 when PIA was sneeringly known as ‘Perhaps I’ll Arrive’.
 
Daily Times (Pakistan)
Friday, March 30, 2012
COMMENT: Way forward: ‘Oonth ka Bacha’ —Hina Hafeezullah Ishaq
(...)
Living up to its current given name PIA (Perhaps I’ll Arrive), the flight was delayed.
 
Twitter
Noreen Khan
‏@DJNoreenKhan
P.I.A. - Perhaps I’ll Arrive.
2:59 PM - Aug 1, 2012
 
The Express Tribune
PIA plane makes emergency landing due to technical fault
By Farhan Zaheer
Published: November 18, 2012
(...)
COMMENTS
the Skunk
Nov 19, 2012 - 8:19AM
Renaming PIA will be a better option. PIA=Perhaps I’ll Arrive OR Paindoos In Authority. Salams

Posted by Barry Popik
New York CityTransportation • Friday, March 01, 2013 • Permalink


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