Sept 15, 2021: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has added two state-of-the-art fuel-powered aircraft to its fleet to enhance flight operations and reduce losses.

National Carrier has acquired two Airbus A320s on dry lease from Bank of Utah, USA. According to a statement issued by the national airline, the first A320 arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday morning while the second is expected to land in a few weeks. PIA, which continues to face huge losses and financial woes, recorded a loss of Rs 25 billion for the half year ended June 30, 2021.

However, according to the latest data provided by PIA to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), the loss was considered to be 31.5% less than the Rs 36.5 billion recorded in the same period last year. Considering the disadvantages, PIA plans to upgrade its fleet with new versions of state-of-the-art fuel-powered aircraft.

The newly acquired wide-body Jets, born in 2017, aim to replace the airline’s aging fleet. However, due to the pandemic and the current crisis in the global aircraft industry, the process of adding aircraft had slowed.

Commenting on the inclusion of the new aircraft, PIA CEO Air Marshal Arshad Malik said that PIA now intends to provide its customers with the best services with fuel-efficient jets. He praised the airline’s management for involving the aircraft in difficult times and congratulated them on their achievement. Mr. Malik directed the concerned departments to meet all the necessary requirements immediately and bring the aircraft into operation as soon as possible.

While this seems like a good time to add the aircraft as the Covid 19 induced lockdowns are being relaxed, and this will increase demand, some disagree and say the new addition will not make much of a difference to the losses already incurred by PIA.

Malik, an experienced aviation expert, believes that replacing old models with relatively new ones in the PIA fleet will improve the average age of the Airbus fleet. He added that the new models will use less fuel.

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