A.Rafay
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ISLAMABAD: With total losses exceeding Rs150 billion and almost a dozen of its 38 aircraft grounded, secretary defence and PIAs new chairman Lt-Gen (Retd) Asif Yaseen Malik is justified in terming the airline as a bleeding organisation.
While reports of PIA cabin crews increasing involvement in drug smuggling and those of cockpit crew caught while flying under influence of alcohol are cause of grave concern, the recent revelation of a few senior PIA pilots holding fake educational degrees exposed the grave moral degradation that has crept in the airlines higher echelons.
With over 18,000 employees, the airline has abnormally high aircraft to personnel ratio of around 1:450 (450 persons to support one aircraft) as against the average 1:150 for many successful and profit-making international airlines. Despite being cash strapped, the PIA hired a deputy managing director at a reported monthly tax-free salary of $50,000 and other lucrative perks for almost four years, till he was fired recently after public hue and cry.
Can PIA or other state enterprises that are stuffed with former terrorists or known crooks, ever progress to remain financially viable? Successive PPP governments since 1988 ensured systematic deterioration of public sector institutions through politically motivated and merit-less inductions that resulted in poor quality of human resource and created a culture of inefficiency, slackness and corruption.
According to former head of Military Intelligence in Sindh, Brig (Retd) Hamid Saeed, who gave evidence before Supreme Court in the Asghar Khan case, a large number of Al-Zulfiqar terrorists trained in India were inducted in various organisations including PIA during Benazir Bhuttos first government in 1988-90.
The government delivered the death blow when the Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance was promulgated in February 2009 to reinstate over 7,000 people, mostly PPP jiyalas, who were appointed in autonomous/semi-autonomous bodies or government service during Benazirs second tenure as Prime Minister (1993- 96).
They were later dismissed from service on account of discipline or corruption charges after the PPP government was sacked in November 1996. Were these employees subjected to special screening/security clearances before re-inducting them after almost twelve years with arrears of financial compensation as well as promotion/restoration of seniority?
While increasing instances of aborted takeoffs, engine failures, in-flight technical problems and emergency landings in both PIAs heavy bodied and light aircraft reflect serious problems with PIAs maintenance/quality assurance systems, it also points towards a weak oversight by Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the airlines inspecting and regulating authority.
Both PIA and CAA need to make public the results of technical investigations and follow up accountability of PIA personnel as well as remedial measures to prevent recurrences of such mishaps. Why has CAA failed to implement SOPs to eliminate birds menace from airports/ runways that could have prevented many cases of bird strikes during aircraft landing/takeoff?
Did a lack of effective CAA checks/control over PIA fleets airworthiness and safety standards contribute to PIAs all round failures and steep down slide during last five years? By appointing a serving PIA pilot as director general of CAA, did the CAA not fail to regulate PIA because of stark conflict of interest? If the operator becomes its regulator will safety standards not be compromised? Never before have both PIA and CAA been run by senior PIA pilots whose closeness to one of the top men may have outweighed other merit considerations for these critical posts.
The PIA, like other failing/failed state enterprises needs a major surgery and overhaul. But then this would require bold decisions. First and foremost, the extra fat or dead wood needs to be removed to trim it into a lean, efficient and professional organisation. If the airlines internal discipline is to be re-established, then pilots/ workers unions that are considered hurdles in PIAs progress should be banned or suspended for a few years till order and sanity is restored and the airline turned into a profit-making organisation.
The experiment of appointing senior PIA pilots to manage PIA/CAA has accentuated chaos in these organisations. While the appointment of the present secretary of defence as chairman PIA may be a useful interim arrangement, PIA needs a full-time chairman with credible aviation background and full powers to stem the rot.
Since no good can be expected from this government/ Parliament, the Supreme Court or caretaker government in March next year need to find the legal way to abolish the Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Reinstatement bill 2009 that contributed towards collapse of public sector entities including PIA.
The Supreme Court should appoint an independent commission to conduct a holistic probe into PIAs affairs including flight operations mismanagement, flight delays, non-viable loss making routes, unreliable maintenance and overhaul of aircraft/engines, shady aircraft procurement/ leasing deals and corruption in foreign postings. The CAA, too, needs a thorough scrutiny to investigate its role as the airlines regulator with special reference to renewal of flying licences and clearance of medically unfit PIA pilots.
The PIA/CAA commission should be headed by a Supreme Court judge and comprise neutral members with expertise in airlines operational/financial/human resource management and aircraft airworthiness/safety standards.
Till the commission submits its report to the Supreme Court that is presently hearing the PIA suo moto case and unless structural changes or a transparent procurement regime is in place, the government should be barred from pushing through PIAs reported Rs25 billion business bailout plan as well as procurement/leasing of new aircraft.
If PIA is to regain its lost glory and the richly deserved slogan of Great people to fly with of the past, this miracle could only be performed by another Air Marshal Asghar Khan or Nur Khan-style committed, selfless and bold leadership witnessed in the sixties/seventies. Unless PIA wins back passengers confidence through professionalism and commitment to safety and service, the public perception of Dangerous people to fly with may soon become a reality.
The writer is an aeronautical engineer and a retired Brigadier
PIA: How to get it flying high again - thenews.com.pk
While reports of PIA cabin crews increasing involvement in drug smuggling and those of cockpit crew caught while flying under influence of alcohol are cause of grave concern, the recent revelation of a few senior PIA pilots holding fake educational degrees exposed the grave moral degradation that has crept in the airlines higher echelons.
With over 18,000 employees, the airline has abnormally high aircraft to personnel ratio of around 1:450 (450 persons to support one aircraft) as against the average 1:150 for many successful and profit-making international airlines. Despite being cash strapped, the PIA hired a deputy managing director at a reported monthly tax-free salary of $50,000 and other lucrative perks for almost four years, till he was fired recently after public hue and cry.
Can PIA or other state enterprises that are stuffed with former terrorists or known crooks, ever progress to remain financially viable? Successive PPP governments since 1988 ensured systematic deterioration of public sector institutions through politically motivated and merit-less inductions that resulted in poor quality of human resource and created a culture of inefficiency, slackness and corruption.
According to former head of Military Intelligence in Sindh, Brig (Retd) Hamid Saeed, who gave evidence before Supreme Court in the Asghar Khan case, a large number of Al-Zulfiqar terrorists trained in India were inducted in various organisations including PIA during Benazir Bhuttos first government in 1988-90.
The government delivered the death blow when the Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Ordinance was promulgated in February 2009 to reinstate over 7,000 people, mostly PPP jiyalas, who were appointed in autonomous/semi-autonomous bodies or government service during Benazirs second tenure as Prime Minister (1993- 96).
They were later dismissed from service on account of discipline or corruption charges after the PPP government was sacked in November 1996. Were these employees subjected to special screening/security clearances before re-inducting them after almost twelve years with arrears of financial compensation as well as promotion/restoration of seniority?
While increasing instances of aborted takeoffs, engine failures, in-flight technical problems and emergency landings in both PIAs heavy bodied and light aircraft reflect serious problems with PIAs maintenance/quality assurance systems, it also points towards a weak oversight by Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the airlines inspecting and regulating authority.
Both PIA and CAA need to make public the results of technical investigations and follow up accountability of PIA personnel as well as remedial measures to prevent recurrences of such mishaps. Why has CAA failed to implement SOPs to eliminate birds menace from airports/ runways that could have prevented many cases of bird strikes during aircraft landing/takeoff?
Did a lack of effective CAA checks/control over PIA fleets airworthiness and safety standards contribute to PIAs all round failures and steep down slide during last five years? By appointing a serving PIA pilot as director general of CAA, did the CAA not fail to regulate PIA because of stark conflict of interest? If the operator becomes its regulator will safety standards not be compromised? Never before have both PIA and CAA been run by senior PIA pilots whose closeness to one of the top men may have outweighed other merit considerations for these critical posts.
The PIA, like other failing/failed state enterprises needs a major surgery and overhaul. But then this would require bold decisions. First and foremost, the extra fat or dead wood needs to be removed to trim it into a lean, efficient and professional organisation. If the airlines internal discipline is to be re-established, then pilots/ workers unions that are considered hurdles in PIAs progress should be banned or suspended for a few years till order and sanity is restored and the airline turned into a profit-making organisation.
The experiment of appointing senior PIA pilots to manage PIA/CAA has accentuated chaos in these organisations. While the appointment of the present secretary of defence as chairman PIA may be a useful interim arrangement, PIA needs a full-time chairman with credible aviation background and full powers to stem the rot.
Since no good can be expected from this government/ Parliament, the Supreme Court or caretaker government in March next year need to find the legal way to abolish the Sacked Employees (Reinstatement) Reinstatement bill 2009 that contributed towards collapse of public sector entities including PIA.
The Supreme Court should appoint an independent commission to conduct a holistic probe into PIAs affairs including flight operations mismanagement, flight delays, non-viable loss making routes, unreliable maintenance and overhaul of aircraft/engines, shady aircraft procurement/ leasing deals and corruption in foreign postings. The CAA, too, needs a thorough scrutiny to investigate its role as the airlines regulator with special reference to renewal of flying licences and clearance of medically unfit PIA pilots.
The PIA/CAA commission should be headed by a Supreme Court judge and comprise neutral members with expertise in airlines operational/financial/human resource management and aircraft airworthiness/safety standards.
Till the commission submits its report to the Supreme Court that is presently hearing the PIA suo moto case and unless structural changes or a transparent procurement regime is in place, the government should be barred from pushing through PIAs reported Rs25 billion business bailout plan as well as procurement/leasing of new aircraft.
If PIA is to regain its lost glory and the richly deserved slogan of Great people to fly with of the past, this miracle could only be performed by another Air Marshal Asghar Khan or Nur Khan-style committed, selfless and bold leadership witnessed in the sixties/seventies. Unless PIA wins back passengers confidence through professionalism and commitment to safety and service, the public perception of Dangerous people to fly with may soon become a reality.
The writer is an aeronautical engineer and a retired Brigadier
PIA: How to get it flying high again - thenews.com.pk
