Eight out of 10 PIA flights take off on time, claims CAA report

Says national carrier has improved adherence to schedule

ISLAMABAD: With an enhanced fleet, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has achieved benchmark of overall 82%  ‘on- time’ departure, meaning eight out of every 10 flights have been taking off on time.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Wednesday issued a performance report on itself and its allied departments. The report remarks that PIA has exhibited marked improvement since the current management took over in February 2014.

The CAA spokesman said that during the on-going Hajj operation, PIA’s on-time departure has been 96.3% so far.

Among the airlines in the region, Qatar Airways is leading with 87% overall on-time departure performance followed by Emirates Airlines operating at 84%, Saudi Arabian Airlines at 81 %, Gulf Air at 78% and Air India at 76%.

PIA management plans to add few more aircraft which, they hope, would further improve the carrier’s operational capabilities. However, PIA operates only 104 to 110 flights per day while region’s other leading airlines operate with a much bigger fleet and scale.

In financial terms, CAA report said, the national carrier has earned a gross operating profit of Rs2.83 billion in the first quarter of the current financial year.

Closing down operations on loss-making routes like Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Hong Kong and Bangkok saved PIA Rs1.2 billion, the report said.

Read: PIA looking to steer itself upwards

Since PIA has hundreds of billions of rupees in legacy loans, it would take the airline a long time to achieve net profit.  With an increase of 6% in revenue and reduction of 37% in losses during 2014-15, PIA will be at breakeven, without legacy loans burden. PIA has been negotiating with the finance ministry to park its legacy loans since debt serving consumes all the revenue.

According to CAA’s performance report, induction of new aircraft to replace old fuel guzzlers, closing down loss-making routes, manpower rationalisation at international stations helped ameliorated PIA’s financial situation.

Read: PIA, travel agency officials to come under the scanner

In 2013, PIA had a total of 22 operational aircraft with an average fleet age of 14 years. By the end of the current calendar year, it will have a fleet of 42 planes with an average age of 6 years. This would include PIA among the leading airlines in the region with latest aircraft fleet: Qatar Airways has average fleet age of 7 years, Emirates 6.5 years.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 17^th,  2015.

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