PIA earns profit of Rs2.83bln in first quarter

KARACHI: The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has earned a gross operating profit of Rs2.83 billion in the first quarter of 2015 as against a gross operating loss of Rs3.93 billion in the first quarter of 2014, a company statement said on Wednesday.
With the inclusion of fuel efficient, narrow body aircraft, the airline’s operations improved, enabling efficiency and better control on fuel cost. The combined effect of downward trend in fuel prices and the impact of replacement of aging fleet with fuel efficient aircraft resulted in almost 49 percent decline in the fuel cost against the corresponding period last year. The airline is in the process of increasing the capacity by inducting more narrow body aircraft. Five ATRs and two wide body aircraft on dry lease had already been initiated through a transparent and competitive bidding process.