ISLAMABAD - Pakistan's embattled national airline apologised for an advert of a plane flying at the Eiffel Tower, published to mark the first flight to Paris after a safety ban was lifted.
The image posted by state-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to social media showed a plane aimed at the French landmark with the caption "Paris, we're coming today".
In thousands of comments online, users drew comparisons with the 2001 Al-Qaeda attacks on New York's Twin Towers, when two planes were hijacked and flown into the skyscrapers, killing nearly 3,000.
Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan by US special forces in 2011, while a Pakistani militant currently held in Guantanamo Bay is considered the chief mastermind of the attack.
"Unfortunately, this was blown out of proportion with connations and perceptions that were not intended," PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan told AFP.
"It might have triggered some negative emotion, for which we truly apologise."
He said there were around 60,00 to 70,000 negative reactions online, or less than 10 percent of engagement.
"Is this (an) advertisement or threat?" said one post under the advert, which has not been taken down.
"I'd have a word with your marketing department on this one chief," said another.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said the prime minister has ordered an inquiry into the advert which "shows stupidity".
But Khan said the response to PIA's return to Europe has been "extremely positive", with flights so far operating at more than 95 per cent capacity.