Sanity prevails: PIA abandons wet lease scheme

"It is better to be late then never." Sanity, after all, prevailed and, in a swift move, the Managing Director of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has rejected the Airbus 320 wet lease option, to avoid possible disaster.
According to Pakistan Airlines Pilots'' Association (Palpa), following a meeting with the representatives of professional unions and associations of PIA employees, the Managing Director, on their advice, rejected the summary moved earlier for acquiring two Airbus 320 on wet lease.
This would save the national carrier millions of rupees'' loss which otherwise would have been incurred had the deal gone through. Rather, it was suggested that the management should strive to bring the grounded aircraft into operation, after necessary overhauling.
The representatives of Palpa, the Society of Aircraft Engineers (SAEP), Flight Engineers Association (FENA), and Aircraft Technicians Association of PIA (ATAP), had advised that, if at all more aircraft were needed, option should be explored for Boeing 737, which is already in service in PIA and the airline has full support from both human resource and engineering perspective.
Palpa President Captain Suhail Baluch said that at a time when the airline is already accused of having more than needed employees, how the management could justify bringing additional flight cabin and engineering crew with more leased aircraft. It was conveyed to the management that any such agreement of leasing aircraft would not be acceptable to the employees of PIA.
The national carrier already has five aircraft of latest 300 series of Boeing 747, out of which two are grounded. Despite this availability, the management entered into millions of dollars dubious deal to acquire two Boeings 747 of old 200 series. Captain Suhail emphasised that the administration should endeavour to get its six to seven grounded aircraft ready for operations after necessary repairs to lessen the financial burden. Leasing the aircraft, with crew, would further increase the airline''s problems, both financially and administratively.
Referring to Hajj operations, he said that these operations were planned well in advance but someone in the planning department failed to get the six engines repaired in time, resulting in the grounding of PIA aircraft and forcing the airline to acquire two Boeing 747-200 on lease at a heavy cost of $8.445 million for two months. This could have been easily avoided if the engines had been repaired at a relatively low cost of $1.5 million only.
The Palpa President said that the average repairing cost 29 RB-211 Rolls Royce engines, which were repaired during April 2010 to September 2011 was $25,000 per engine. Six similar engines became non-functional much before Hajj operations but, instead of getting them repaired for a cumulative cost of $1.5 million, two aircraft were inducted on wet lease, causing a loss of $6.945 million to the airline (approx Rs 610 million).
Because of acquiring two aircraft on wet lease, PIA''s own crew, both regular and contract, flying Boeing 747s, remained under-utilised during the peak Hajj season, notwithstanding the fact that PIA has been paying them guaranteed flying allowance. Captain Suhail demanded a thorough investigation in these financial irregularities and wasteful expenditure. He considered it a fit case for forwarding to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).