New PIA aircraft arrives

KARACHI: The fifth A320 aircraft, to be inducted in PIA fleet, arrived at Jinnah International Airport on Thursday, a statement said.
Managing Director PIA Shahnawaz Rehman said the induction of more aircraft in PIA fleet became possible due to the patronage of the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and untiring efforts of Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Aviation Shujaat Azeem and Chairman PIA Nasser NS Jaffer.
Rehman said PIA’s financial results of first quarter 2015 are indicative of better financial performance compared to the corresponding period of last year.
With newer versions of fuel efficient aircraft being included in PIA fleet, the employees will have to put in extra efforts for turning around the corporation towards the desired goal for the airline’s revival, he added.
The airline is in the process of increasing capacity by inducting aircraft in its fleet and has initiated acquiring aircraft through a transparent and competitive bidding process.
The statement said the airline now has five A320 aircraft, while eight more A320 narrow body aircraft will be added to PIA fleet by June- July. Furthermore, out of five ATR-72 aircraft being leased, two ATR-72 aircraft have already been added to the fleet, while the remaining will be included shortly, it added. PIA has also floated tenders for three wide body aircraft for inclusion in the airline’s fleet.
PIA MD said with the inclusion of fuel efficient, narrow body aircraft, the airline’s operations are improving, enabling further efficiency, better control on fuel cost and PIA’s regularity.
He said these aircraft will be deployed on domestic as well as short haul international routes.