PAKISTAN’s flag carrier admitted today it was struggling to pay bills and wages after local media reports said the fleet may be grounded within days.

Abdullah Hafeez, spokesman for government-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), said the company was seeking urgent financial help from the treasury, but had secured funds “for the time being”.

“But we do struggle due to balance sheet challenges,” he said.

“That is why PIA is seeking balance sheet restructuring support from the owners.”

Decades of mismanagement and instability have hobbled Pakistan’s economy, and this year Islamabad was forced into a deal with the International Monetary Fund to avert default.

State-run enterprises in particular – long accused of being bloated and poorly run – have found funds drying up as the government struggled with a balance of payments crisis caused by crippling debt repayments.

Hafeez said three flights were grounded yesterday and that salaries were paid late.

Twenty-five aircraft from a fleet of 31 were still flying, with others grounded for scheduled or unscheduled maintenance, he said.

Local television channel Geo this week reported the airline was on the verge of collapse and operations could be suspended in days if emergency funds were not provided.

Bloomberg reported PIA had liabilities of 743 billion rupees (RM11.5 billion), exceeding its total assets by five times.

PIA came into being in 1955 when the government nationalised a loss-making commercial airline, and it enjoyed rapid growth until the 1990s.

The liberalisation of the market and launch of several private and publicly owned airlines put enormous pressure on PIA, resulting in years of losses.

The airline’s reputation was also battered by a series of strikes, hijackings and accidents – including the crash of an Airbus in Karachi in May 2020 that killed 97 passengers and crew.

The government had plans to sell part or all of the airline, but had so far not acted on at least two proposals put forward for privatisation by special committees. – AFP, September 15, 2023.