PIA: furor over future!

Pakistan's national air carrier company Pakistan International Airlines, on the verge of insolvency, has continuously faced serious shocks. Another abominable face of corruption prevailing in Pakistan came to light only recently when the fact became public that a large number of pilots are employed in this company who do not meet the required qualifications. In this way deliberately risking the lives of the passengers was done. But now the consequences are obvious. United States also imposed a ban on flights of the national flag carrier for six months citing dubious pilots’ licenses. The move followed the grounding of 262 pilots whose licenses Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan termed “dubious”. Earlier, the European Union Air Safety Agency (EASA) had suspended the authorisation for PIA to operate in the bloc for six months on similar grounds. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has barred its 32 member states from allowing Pakistani-licensed pilots from flying aircraft, following reports that some of pilot licenses issued by the Pakistani authorities were either “falsified or not compliant with the global regulator. PIA was allowed to operate 12 direct special flights to the United States of which the airline had operated seven flights. The permission for the remaining five flights had now been revoked, according to the sources.

Crisis of faith!

A report related to the crash of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane in Karachi on 22nd May, was submitted to the Aviation Division and Prime Minister Imran Khan. The report established that the cause of the crash, in which 97 lost their lives, was total human error. The aviation experts termed the development alarming for the future of Pakistani pilots. They said the credentials of the pilots should be thoroughly scrutinised and all necessary steps be taken to restore the confidence in the Pakistan airlines internationally. This is notable that while addressing Pakistan's National Assembly, Ghulam Sarwar Khan said more than 30% of civilian pilots in Pakistan have fake licenses and are not qualified to fly. He said 262 pilots in the country "did not take the exam themselves" and had paid someone else to sit it on their behalf. The minister, on the other hand, alleged that the governments of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had recruited 658 employees, including pilots and engineers, having fake academic degrees and dubious licences between 2008 and 2018.

Dwindling PIA!

Lack of political stability in Pakistan, military intervention and inefficiency of financial management are responsible for all this. Now PIA’s total debt on June 30, 400 billion Pakistani rupees, and that number is approaching the 500 billion mark, with the airline currently losses of 6.3 billion rupees per month. The Pakistani deep state continues to occupy this industry too. Pakistan Air Force (PAF) officials, with the aviation sector, treated as a retirement home for military men. Aviation experts underline that the PIA’s entire functioning has been held hostage to vested groups, more interested in using the airline to serve personal, or institutional, ambitions. For many, the PIA is a microcosm of all that ails Pakistan. PIA, which is helmed by a serving air force officer, has a fleet of 31 planes and a payroll of about 14,500 workers. In terms of employee-to-aircraft ratio PIA behind Syrian Air in 2016. This high and imbalance ratio has seen long-standing accusations that the government and the military use the airline to dish out jobs to cronies and retired military officers.

Losses and debt of PIA have become too great for the company to handle. It is not possible to provide the amount of money it needs in the current economic situation of Pakistan. On the other hand, the issue of pilots has tarnished Pakistan's reputation internationally which will have far-reaching effects.