ISLAMABAD – Pakistan International Airlines has reportedly increased thesalaries of the Pilots in terms of enhanced flying hours.
The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has decided to spend Rs. 915million on salary increases for its pilots.
A notification says, “The aviation secretary was convinced that theincrement of Rs 915 million (per annum) was based upon restructuring 75hours guaranteed with 10 days off in a month and not linked to any fixedpercentage, therefore he assured PALPA Executive Committee that he would dothe needful for the implementation of the same through the board ofdirectors and Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL).”
Reportedly, the national airline was paying the pilots 50 guaranteed flyinghours previously, which depended upon their average utilization standingaround 43 to 45 hours per months.
However, presently, the flight schedules of the flag carrier and the numberof aircraft fleet that is properly operational have declined with thenumber of pilots remaining the same. The decline in flight schedules andaircraft has decreased the average utilization as well, making it 28 to 30hours.
The increase in guaranteed hours to 75 will take a huge toll on the alreadyloss-making flag carrier. The experts criticize this step and state thatthis money could be used for upgrading or changing of InflightEntertainment System (IFES), which has become obsolete at the moment.