United International Group Chairman Mian Shahid said on Sunday that the reason behind Rs 300 billion losses in the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was not excess number of employees but lack of planes.
The successive managements of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), he said, continued to ground older aircraft as per the procedures but could not buy or get new planes on lease due to lack of funds which increased the number of employees per plane. Moreover, the management had sold profitable routes to raise funds which provided temporary relief but it proved harmful in the longer run, he said in a statement issued on Sunday.
Mian Shahid said the PIA spent 14 per cent of revenue on staff salaries while other airlines spent 15 to 20 per cent on the same. Similarly, the PIA and other airlines continued to spend 50 per cent of their revenue on fuel before the fall in oil prices, he added.
Reduced oil prices, however, proved bonanza for other airlines but the PIA could not get full benefit of the opportunity due to enhanced taxes on imported fossil fuel. Situation could be improved if the national flag carrier was provided with sufficient number of aircraft, he said.
Mian Shahid said the business community supported sale of unviable entities inflicting annual loss of trillions of rupees. The government should sell loss-making entities and use the funds for constructive activities which was necessary for the national development, he added.
