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Pakistan International Airlines
پاکستان انٹرنیشنل ایئر لائنز
pākistān antarnaishnal air lainz

IATA ICAO Call sign PK PIA PAKISTAN
Founded	29 October 1946; 78 years ago (1946-10-29) (as Orient Airways)
Commenced operations	11 March 1955; 69 years ago (1955-03-11) (as Pakistan International Airlines)
Frequent-flyer program	Awards Plus
Subsidiaries	Roosevelt Hotel (New York)
Fleet size	31
Destinations	60
Parent company	Aviation Division, GoP
Traded as	PSX: PIAHCLA
Headquarters	Jinnah International Airport, Karachi
Key people	Aslam R Khan (Chairman) Khurram Mushtaq (CEO)
Revenue	Rs. 165 billion (US$570 million) (2024)
Operating income	Rs. -112 billion (US$−390 million) (2024)
Net income	Rs. 137 billion (US$470 million) (2024)
Total assets	Rs. 160 billion (US$550 million) (2024)
Employees	7,000 (2024)
Website	www.piac.com.pk

Pakistan International Airlines (Urdu: پاکستان انٹرنیشنل ایئر لائنز; abbreviated PIA, Urdu: پی‌آئی‌اے) is an international airline which is the government-owned flag carrier of Pakistan. Its primary hub is Karachi's Jinnah International Airport, while Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore and Islamabad International Airport serve as secondary hubs.

PIA was founded on 29 October 1946 by Mirza Ahmad Ispahani and Adamjee Haji Dawood as Orient Airways, and was initially based in Calcutta, British India, before shifting operations to the newly independent state of Pakistan in 1947. Orient Airways was nationalised to form the Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (PIAC). The new airline commenced international services in 1955 to London, via Cairo and Rome. In 1964 it became the first non-Communist airline to fly to China. The airline assisted in the establishment of Emirates in 1985. In 2004, PIA became the launch customer of the Boeing 777-200LR. On 10 November 2005, PIA used the Boeing 777-200LR to complete the world's longest nonstop flight by a commercial airliner. This flight lasted 22 hours and 22 minutes on the eastbound route between Hong Kong and London.

PIA is Pakistan's largest airline and operates a fleet of 31 aircraft. The airline operates a frequent flyer program, Awards +Plus. It is not part of any airline alliance. The airline operates nearly 50 flights daily, servicing 20 domestic destinations and 27 international destinations across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North America. It is under the administrative control of the Secretary to the Government of Pakistan for Aviation.

In addition to commercial flight operations, PIA also owns the Sofitel Paris, The Scribe Hotel in Paris, and The Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. The Roosevelt is now used as a homeless shelter.

The Government of Pakistan's report in 2020 emphasized that after Air Marshals Nur Khan and Asghar Khan—whose tenures were regarded in aviation circles as the "Golden Age of PIA"—departed from their leadership roles, the airline began a downward trajectory, suffering billions in losses. Its assets declined, disciplinary issues escalated, and unions indirectly took control of management. Aircraft capable of flying were grounded, and equipment that could have been repaired was neglected.

On 30 June 2020, PIA was banned from flying in European airspace initially for six months, starting on 1 July 2020, and then indefinitely after EASA determined that the airline was not capable of certifying and overseeing its operators and aircraft in accordance with applicable international standards. This decision was made soon after it was revealed that at least a fourth of all pilots' licences issued in Pakistan were not genuine. By 9 July 2020, the airline was also banned by the United Kingdom and the United States.

On November 29, 2024, the EASA lifted its ban on PIA and other Pakistani carriers, allowing travel between Pakistan and Europe.

Early years

Pakistan International Airlines can trace its origins to the days when Pakistan had not gained independence and was still part of the British Raj until 1947. In the early 1930s, Imperial Airways operated its long-haul routes by creating a lot of small airports across Africa and Asia. The Handley Page H.P.42 aircraft was Imperial Airways' first major success, as it was specially designed to handle operations from unprepared ground.

In 1945, the country's founder Muhammed Ali Jinnah realised the need for a flag carrier for the prospective country and requested financial help from wealthy businessmen Mirza Ahmad Ispahani and Adamjee Haji Dawood for this purpose. As a result, the new airline, Orient Airways, was registered in Kolkata (then known as Calcutta) on 23 October 1946. Orient became the first and only Muslim-owned airline in the British Raj.

In February 1947, the airline bought three Douglas DC-3 aircraft and obtained a licence to fly in May of the same year. The airline started its operations on 30 June 1947, offering services in British India from Calcutta to Sittwe and Rangoon (present-day Yangon).

Post-independence

On 14 August 1947, Pakistan gained independence and Orient Airways started relief operations for the new country. The airline was entrusted with the task of servicing air routes between East and West Pakistan. By 1949, Orient acquired three Convair CV-240s to service the Karachi-Delhi-Kolkata-Dhaka route and became the first Asian airline to operate Convair aircraft.

1950s

Orient's traffic continuously declined until 1953 as Great Britain's BOAC had been granted rights to carry passengers between the two wings of Pakistan, while two other local competitors also began serving Orient routes. As a result of losses, the Pakistani government began subsidising Orient's operations through a 1952 contract for the purchase of three Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellations registered to the government's newly established subsidiary, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), at the cost of 25 million rupees. PIA had been established as a department of Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority, and was tasked with operation and maintenance of the new Lockheed aircraft.

Pakistan's government established the Pakistan International Airlines Corporation through the merger of Orient Airways with Pakistan International Airlines on 1 October 1953 by an interim joint operating agreement in which the government assumed financial control of the airline, while Orient's operations and ground assets could be complemented by the aircraft of Pakistan International Airlines – although Orient Airways continued to operate under its name for a few more years.

Pakistan's Ministry of Defence took over operations from the Civil Aviation Authority in early 1954, while the chairman of Orient Airways became the CEO of PIA, and foreign staff brought in to help relaunch the airline. On 7 June 1954, Orient Airways began nonstop flight services between East and West Pakistan, with service from Karachi to Dhaka using Pakistan International Airlines' Lockheed aircraft that had been ordered in 1952 and delivered in early 1954. The route was subsidised by the government so that middle-class Pakistanis could afford to fly the route, with rates that may have been the lowest in the world at the time. The airline also introduced two new domestic routes: Karachi–Lahore–Peshawar and Karachi–Quetta–Lahore.

On 11 March 1955, Orient Airways and Pakistan International Airlines were formally merged as part of the Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Ordinance, 1955. Orient Airways ceased operations while the Government of Pakistan took a majority holding in the airline. The new PIA had a fleet of three L-I049C Super Constellations, two Convair CV-240s, and eleven DC-3s.

The newly relaunched airline also inaugurated its first international route, Karachi-London Heathrow Airport via Cairo and Rome, using the newly acquired Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellations. The airline continued using DC-3s on domestic routes in Pakistan. PIA carried 113,165 passengers in 1955 – 50% higher than in 1954.

In May 1956, PIA ordered five Vickers Viscount 815s. The airline also entered into a partnership with PanAm to train PIA's personnel in 1956. In 1957–1958, passenger numbers rose to 208,000, necessitating the purchase of two additional Lockheed Super Constellations. The appointment of Air Marshal Nur Khan as the managing director of PIA in 1959 heralded an era of success for PIA.

1960s

In February 1960, PIA wet-leased a Boeing 707 from Pan American Airlines and introduced it onto the Karachi-London route on 7 March 1960 initially using Pan Am pilots, thereby becoming the second Asian airline to induct and commercially operate a jet aircraft in its fleet after Air India. An all-Pakistani crew began operation of the 707 from 20 June 1960 onwards. By the end of 1960, PIA, for the first time, entered financial profitability.

With the newly acquired aircraft, the airline introduced its first trans-Atlantic route Karachi-New York JFK (then known as Idlewild) via London Heathrow on 5 May 1961, which was suspended in February 1963. In 1961, it expanded its fleet by placing orders for 3 Boeing 720s, which were delivered in 1962. On 2 January 1962, a PIA Boeing 720B flown by Captain Abdullah Beg from London to Karachi established a world record for speed over a commercial airline route of 938.78 km/h (582.98 mph), a record which still holds to this day. Fokker F27 Friendships, and Sikorsky helicopters were also ordered and delivered in 1963, with the helicopters used to provide air service to 20 towns in East Pakistan until 1966.

The helicopters were retired in 1966 and a reduced network of eight cities was served by Fokker F27 aircraft. Upon the establishment of ties between Pakistan and the People's Republic of China, PIA started flying the Dhaka-Guangzhou-Shanghai route on 29 April 1964, becoming the first airline of a non-communist country flying to the People's Republic of China. On 10 May 1964, PIA became the first non-Soviet airline offering flights to Europe via Moscow.

At the outbreak of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, the Pakistani Armed Forces used PIA's services for logistics and transport purposes. The Viscounts were phased out in 1966 and were replaced by four Hawker Siddeley Tridents.

PIA's route network grew rapidly in the mid to late 1960s: Dhahran was added in 1965, while Cairo services resumed. In 1966, Paris, Istanbul, Baghdad, Kuwait, Jeddah and Nairobi were added to PIA's routes. Bangkok was added in 1967, while Manila, Tokyo, and Damascus were added in 1969.

1970s

On 3 December 1971, a French national's attempt to hijack a PIA flight from Paris to Karachi was thwarted by French security forces. Transatlantic flights to New York City were resumed in May 1972 with a stopover in Europe. With the establishment of cordial ties between the Libyan and Pakistani governments in the early 1970s, PIA added Tripoli to its network in 1972. PIA also signed an agreement with Yugoslav airline JAT (today known as Air Serbia) in 1972 to lease two PIA Boeing 707s to JAT.

PIA acquired McDonnell Douglas DC-10s in 1973 to replace its remaining Boeing 707-300s. Nur Khan was appointed as PIA executive for the second term in 1974. In 1974, PIA launched Pakistan International Cargo, offering air freight and cargo services.

The latter half of the decade witnessed a further expansion of PIA's fleet with the introduction of Boeing 747s, with its first two aircraft leased from TAP Air Portugal in 1976. By 1976–7, PIA carried 2.2 million passengers, compared to 698,000 in 1972–3. Revenues in 1976 rose sharply compared to 1975, with the airline revenues of $134 million in the July–December period of 1976. On 20 January 1978, a PIA Fokker 27 was hijacked en route to Karachi from Sukkur.

For the first time since its inauguration, PIA started providing technical and administrative assistance or leased aircraft to foreign airlines including Air China, Air Malta, Choson Minhang (today known as Air Koryo), Philippine Airlines, Somali Airlines, and Yemenia. A subsidiary of PIA also started providing hotel management services in the United Arab Emirates towards the end of the decade. Political upheaval in Pakistan in the late 1970s began to impact PIA's operations negatively.

1980s

The 1980s saw a continuation of PIA growth. The decade began with the opening of a cargo handling centre at Karachi airport, duty-free shops, the first C and D safety checks on its entire fleet, as well as the introduction of the airline's first Airbus A300B4-200 aircraft. In 1981, PIA had an employee workforce of almost 24,000, which despite being reduced to 20,000 by 1983 still resulted in PIA having the world's highest ratio of employees to aircraft. PIA's operations became increasingly de-centralised during the early 1980s, with responsibilities being split between new departments. Despite de-centralisation, PIA reported its highest ever profits in 1981-82, followed by record profits again in 1983-84.

In 1984, the airline introduced the Night Coach service as a low-cost alternative to day-time domestic flights. In the following years, PIA Planetarium was inaugurated in Karachi which was followed by planetaria in Lahore and Peshawar. These planetariums featured retired PIA aircraft on display for educational and observational purposes. Two more retired Boeing 720B aircraft were donated to the planetaria in Karachi and later on Lahore. PIA profits again rose in 1984–5.

In June 1985, PIA became the first Asian airline to operate the Boeing 737-300 aircraft, after six of the aircraft were delivered. Pakistan International Airlines also played a significant role in establishing UAE's Emirates airline in 1985 by providing technical and administrative assistance to the new carrier as well as leasing a new Boeing 737–300 and an Airbus A300B4-200. In late 1987 and early 1988, services to Malé, Manchester, and Toronto were introduced.

1990s

PIA began to sustain operating losses and liquidity problems throughout the 1990s due to frequent pilot strikes, issues with various vendors, over-staffing, and political interference in airline management. In 1990, First Officer Maliha Sami became the first female pilot of PIA when she took off on the Karachi-Panjgur-Turbat-Gwadar route. In June 1991, PIA took delivery of its first of six Airbus A310-300s. With the new aircraft, the airline introduced flights to Tashkent in 1992 and to Zürich in 1993.

In March 1993, AVM Farooq Umar became managing director of the airline. An Open Skies agreement between Karachi to Dubai was agreed upon in 1993, and 12 private airlines were allowed to operate domestically in Pakistan. Both steps came simultaneously and put enormous pressure on PIA's financial performance, though PIA launched six new routes to the Persian Gulf and CIS countries, along with a tourist 'Air Safari' scenic flight over the Karakoram Mountains in 1994. Non-stop flights from Lahore and Islamabad to JFK and Canada were launched, while PIA added Jakarta, Fujairah, Baku, and Al-Ain to its network in 1994. In addition, PIA became a client of three flight reservation systems, namely: SABRE, Galileo, and Amadeus.

A Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft was also leased briefly in 1996 to cope with a surge in passenger traffic during summer 1996. Flights to Beirut were resumed the same year as well before being discontinued a few years later. In 1999, PIA leased five Boeing 747–300 aircraft from Cathay Pacific to replace its Boeing 747-200M fleet. The aircraft were painted with a new livery, a handwork Pashmina tail, on white body and large Pakistan titles on the front fuselage. The livery was adopted in the early 90s but due to some copyright issues, it was dropped. The Boeing 747-300s continued to bear the new livery, but with a plain green tail with PIA titles. The other aircraft in the fleet were repainted in early 1990s livery.

2000s

The War in Afghanistan following the attacks on 11 September 2001 negatively impacted PIA's operations as Afghan airspace was closed. However, following the restructuring of the airline under new management in April 2001, the airline again became profitable. Cost per employee dropped 24% between 2000 and 2003, and lower engineering and maintenance costs led to enhanced airline revenue.

In July 2002, PIA purchased six Boeing 747–300 aircraft from Cathay Pacific, five of which were already on lease. The sixth one arrived shortly afterwards and was used mainly on its North American and European routes. In October 2002, after ten years without any new orders, the airline placed an order for eight Boeing 777 aircraft. The order included all three variants of 777, i.e. three 777-200ER (Extended Range), two 777-200LR (Longer Range), and three 777-300ER versions. PIA was the launch customer that revived the Boeing 777-200LR project that, until then, only had three orders.

Boeing delivered the first of three 777-200ER aircraft to PIA in January 2004, and PIA introduced a new livery for the 777-200ERs that was applied to most of its fleet. PIA also leased six more Airbus A310-300 aircraft directly from Airbus. On 3 November 2005, PIA placed an order to purchase seven ATR 42-500 aircraft to replace its ageing fleet of Fokker F27 Friendships. On 10 November 2005, PIA used the 777-200LR to fly the world's longest flight by a commercial airliner, flying over 21,000 kilometres on an eastbound flight from Hong Kong to London for 22 hours and 22 minutes – a record which still stands as of late 2019. On 6 December 2005, PIA acquired another new Boeing 777-200ER on a ten-year lease. The same year, Ayesha Rabia Naveed became the first woman to captain a scheduled commercial flight. The following year, she captained a flight with the first all-woman crew. On 23 December 2006, PIA took delivery of its first Boeing 777-300ER. The remaining aircraft were delivered in January 2007.

On 25 February 2006, Boeing delivered its first 777-200LR to PIA. ATR delivered two of the seven ordered ATR 42s to PIA in May and December 2006 respectively, following which the airline ceased using military Lockheed C-130 Hercules for passenger services in northern areas of Pakistan. The military aircraft were being used after the PIA Flight 688 accident.

Under the careful supervision and guidance of Mr. Syed Shah, who was serving as the Station Manager at the time, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) initiated the induction of long-range 777 aircraft into its fleet. This pivotal move allowed PIA to offer non-stop flights from Toronto to Karachi, Islamabad, and Lahore, beginning on 3 March 2006.

The introduction of the long-range 777 aircraft into PIA's fleet marked a significant milestone in the airline's history.

As a result of this strategic decision, PIA was able to offer a more efficient and seamless travel experience for its passengers, enabling them to travel non-stop to their desired destinations in Pakistan. This move also positioned PIA as a prominent player in the aviation industry, further cementing its reputation as a reliable and customer-centric airline. PIA had also planned non-stop flights to New York City, Chicago, Washington, and Houston but was not permitted by US authorities (unless the airline implemented a European stopover on the flight to American cities) due to security concerns after 9/11.

A PIA flight from Multan crashed in July 2006, killing 45. A government inquiry afterward blamed aging aircraft for the crash. Houston services also ended in 2006. Following the crash, on 5 March 2007, the European Commission banned all but 9 of PIA's 42-strong fleet from flying to Europe, citing safety concerns over its ageing aircraft. The fleet of Boeing 777s was exempted from the ban, but 15 aircraft were over 20 years old by this point. PIA claimed that the ban was discriminatory and unjustifiable.

The ban on some of the aircraft was lifted after four months on 5 July 2007, following an inspection by the European Union Air Safety Administration. Of the eleven aircraft allowed to resume operations to the EU, five were Boeing 747-300s, and the remaining six were Airbus A310-300s. On 29 November 2007, the EU completely removed the ban, and PIA's entire fleet was permitted to fly to Europe.

2010s

In 2010, PIA altered its livery. The tail design was replaced with a much larger version of the Pakistan national flag and added the text "Pakistan International" in gold writing underneath the large billboard-style PIA on the fuselage. The green stripe was modified to include gold and was extended to the rear of the fuselage.

By 2011, PIA began to be unprofitable again, requiring government subsidies.

In 2014, PIA leased four Boeing 737-800s. PIA also issued a request for tender for four Boeing 777-300ERs, however, the bids for the 777s were not accepted. The airline did lease Airbus A320 aircraft and inducted two A320-214s in its fleet in 2014. Another wet-leased A320-211s joined PIA on 11 August 2014. In October 2014, the airline again wet-leased three Boeing 737-800s, and it also accepted bids to dry lease five ATR 72–500s for eight years. In 2015, after serving PIA for 16 years, the last of PIA's Boeing 747-300s were phased out.

In early 2016, PIA was fundamentally grounded for an entire week as employees walked out en masse following the deaths of two employees in a demonstration against the airline's privatization. In August 2016, PIA launched a new "Premier Service" for flights to London, using an Airbus A330-300 wet-leased from SriLankan Airlines. The wet-lease period ended after six months, and as a result, the A330-300 was returned to SriLankan Airlines, and the Premier Service discontinued. By the end of 2016, the airline was saddled with $3 billion in debt.

In January 2017, PIA retired all of the Airbus A310-300s from its fleet. For replacement, PIA leased four Boeing 737-800s from Pegasus Airlines, which were returned later on completion of the lease period. After over 50 years of service, PIA service to New York ended in October 2017 as a result of TSA regulation preventing nonstop flights from Pakistan and the US, leaving Toronto as PIA's only destination in North America – which continues to be served by nonstop flights from Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad.

In 2017, PIA decided to replace its reservation and ticketing system "Sabre" with a Turkish-origin system called "Hitit". Both PIA & Hitit signed an agreement and in September 2018, the airline successfully switched to the new system. At the end of 2018, the airline was burdened with $3.3 billion in debt, up from $2.97 the year before, and thus requiring government bailouts for continued operation. With the demise of Shaheen Air, PIA launched routes that had previously been served only by Shaheen.

New profitable routes were launched in 2019, while profitable routes such as Karachi-Toronto saw increased frequencies. six unprofitable routes were discontinued in 2019. In April 2019, PIA claimed that its revenues almost matched operating costs. Later that year following a visit of TSA officials to the Islamabad International Airport in July 2019, PIA expressed hope that non-stop flights to the US would be permitted. In August 2019, PIA laid off 1,000 "redundant employees". In September, PIA announced that it would lease additional aircraft to increase the airline's fleet to 37 by 2020, and 45 by 2023. By the end of 2019, PIA reported a 41% increase in year-on-year revenue due to discontinuation of unprofitable routes, reintroduction of grounded aircraft, and a sharp increase in cargo-space utilization.

2020s

For the first time in its history, PIA operated a relief flight from Lahore to Melbourne, Australia, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 22 May 2020, a PIA Airbus A320-214 AP-BLD, crashed near Karachi airport with 99 people on board. The flight was en route to Karachi from Lahore. Flight PK8303, carrying 91 passengers and eight crew members on board, crashed while on the descent towards the runway of Jinnah International Airport, killing 97 while two passengers survived. The cause of the crash was due to the aircraft being badly damaged in the first belly landing, with both engines flaming out during the go-around. The final report listed following as the primary reasons: human error, non-adherence to SOPs and disregard of ATC instructions during the event flight, lack of communication between the ATC and the flight crew.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) communicated concerns over the "serious lapse in licensing and safety oversight by the aviation regulator".

In November 2020, PIA shut down its courier arm, SpeedEx, whose infrastructure was scattered over 74 domestic destinations, and laid off its 320 employees.

In December 2020, PIA announced a plan to lay off half of its employees and transferred its engineering arm, Precision Engineering Complex (PEC), to the Pakistan Air Force.

Pilot licensing scandal

On 24 June 2020, Pakistani aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan told Parliament that 262 of Pakistan's 860 active, licensed pilots had been found to have suspicious or fake licences. They were suspected of having paid someone else to take their certification examination on their behalf. PIA subsequently grounded 150 of its 434 pilots on suspicion of having a bogus license. Later, the employment of seven pilots was terminated.

On 30 June, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) revoked PIA's 'third part authorisation', subsequently banning PIA from flying in European airspace for six months from the following day, following multiple safety failings.

On 9 July 2020, the United States banned the airline because of concerns about its certification of pilots. By that date, PIA was also banned from flights in the United Kingdom, and Pakistani pilots in Vietnam and Malaysia were grounded on a temporary basis. Reports on 16 July 2020 stated that the US Federal Aviation Administration downgraded Pakistan's air safety rating to category 2. This decision "means no Pakistani airlines can establish new services to the United States or codeshare with US airlines".

On 18 July, PIA dismissed seven pilots and one member of cabin crew whose licences had been revoked by the country's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

On 28 December, the EU ban was extended for three more months, stating that an official inspection of the CAA would have to be performed first. On 16 March 2021, the ban was extended to July. Less than a month later, the ban was extended indefinitely, following another safety concern regarding the CAA that was made public by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ICAO has yet to perform safety audit of the CAA. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) stated that the ICAO's safety audit would be a sign of improvement.

On 6 November 2021, the first sign of improvement appeared when the CAA received positive feedback from Europe's Safety Audit for Foreign-Origin Aircraft (SAFA).

Further improvement was made on 8 March 2023, when PIA completed an online safety audit conducted by EASA.

On 29 November 2024, EASA lifted the EU ban on PIA, citing improvements in the CAA's oversight. PIA subsequentially announced the resumption of flights to Europe.

Canceled flights due to unpaid fuel bills

In late 2023, PIA was forced to cancel numerous flights due to unpaid fuel bills. Resulting cancelations resulted in multiple instances of customer anger creating viral social media content. State-owned Pakistan State Oil suspended fueling of PIA aircraft after PIA's request for additional government funding was denied.

In late December 2023 Interim government planned to privatize the airline. During a question hour in Senate adviser to Prime Minister on Aviation Air Marshal (Retd) Farhat Hussain Khan that said privatization of Pakistan International Airlines is being carried out under the government's policy to privatize loss making entities.

The Adviser said that initially PIA will be privatized as a flight entity and the decision on its other properties will be decided later.

Corporate management

Structure

Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL) is majority-owned by the Government of Pakistan (86%) while the remainder (14%) is owned by private shareholders. The airline is under the administration of Aviation Division and is managed by a president and chief executive officer as well as the board of directors.

The board consists of nine independent non-executive members and has four sub-committees: an Audit Committee, Brand and Advertising Committee, Finance Committee, and Human Resource Committee, each having its charter and chairman. The president and chief executive officer leads the executive management of staff who run the airline. The airline's main headquarters are located at Karachi, while smaller subhead offices are located in several cities within Pakistan.

Seven of PIA's ten departments are in Islamabad, viz, Marketing Department, Procedure Bureau, Central Reservation Control, Revenue Management, HR and Security and Vigilance Department. The remaining three departments are in Karachi, namely finance, engineering and situation room.

Privatisation

In the late 1990s, the Government of Pakistan announced privatisation plans due to the persistent losses suffered by the airline, but they were never implemented; however, several steps towards the outsourcing of non-core businesses were initiated. Catering units (starting with Karachi Flight Kitchen), ground handling (starting with ramp services) and engineering, are to gradually leave the airline and operate as independent companies. In 1997, Pakistan called in a team from International Finance (IFC), the consulting arm of the World Bank, to advise on restructuring and privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). However, no agreement was reached. Despite the government's multiple privatisation plans, on 18 February 2009, the carrier was dropped from the privatisation list.

In 2013, the Government of Pakistan once again aimed to privatise the airline due to increased losses by selling twenty-six percent of shares and management control to the investor. This plan was dropped due to protests by airline unions and associations after security forces killed two employees approaching the Jinnah International Airport terminal building.

In 2018, the newly elected government aimed to not privatise the entity and instead achieve profitability through the change in its top management.

On 6 February 2024, the Caretaker Cabinet of the interim Government decided to split different functions of Pakistan International Airlines into two entities to make it attractive for investors. These entities were named TopCo and HoldCo. TopCo was allocated basic functions, including engineering, ground handling, and flight kitchen and training. HoldCo was given Precision Engineering Complex, PIA Investment Limited and subordinate departments and properties.

On 4 June 2024, the government pre qualified 6 companies to bid for the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines. these companies were Air Blue, Arif Habib Corporation, Blue World City, Fly Jinnah, Pak Ethanol (Pvt) Consortiums, and YB Holdings Consortiums.

Financial and operational performance

In 2011, PIA began to be unprofitable, requiring government subsidies. By the end of 2016, the airline was saddled with $3 billion in debt. At the end of 2018, the airline was burdened with $3.3 billion in debt, up from $2.97 the year before, and thus requiring government bailouts for continued operation. In April 2019, PIA claimed that its revenues almost matched operating costs. An audit in September 2019 revealed that PIA had operated 46 empty flights between 2016 and 2017, without any passengers causing a loss of $1.1 million to the airline. Additionally, 36 Hajj flights were flown without any passengers. By the end of 2019, PIA reported a 41% increase in year-on-year revenue due to discontinuation of unprofitable routes, reintroduction of idle aircraft, and a sharp increase in the airline cargo space utilization.

The airline faces many challenges to its profitability. PIA, along with Etihad, were once considered one of the cheapest airlines in the GCC. Pakistan faces what has been termed "capacity dumping" by Middle East airlines, who operate numerous daily flights to every major city in Pakistan. Pakistan's Open Skies Agreement with the UAE, for example, allows Emirati airlines an unlimited number of seats into Karachi, with Emirates airline alone operating up to seven daily flights to Karachi from Dubai on high-capacity Boeing 777s. PIA also discontinued previously profitable routes to the US, as the TSA forbade nonstop flights from Pakistan to the US, and instead required costly diversions to European airports for immigration clearance – resulting in flight times that were significantly longer than flights on Middle Eastern airlines. New routes such as to Najaf and Bangkok also did not improve the airline's finances given the seasonality of those destinations. Further, staffing levels and overall management issues, including an employee count of 18,014 in 2010 for a fleet of 40 aircraft, present further challenges, although in August 2019, PIA laid off 1,000 "redundant employees".

Financial and operational performance

Year	Revenue (PKR million)	Net income (PKR million)	Passenger load factor (%)	Revenue passengers (million)	Employees (average)
2005	64,074	(4,411)	69	5.499	19,263
2006	70,587	(12,763)	68	5.732	18,282
2007	70,480	(13,398)	67	5.415	18,149
2008	89,201	(35,880)	71	5.617	18,036
2009	94,563	(5,822)	70	5.535	17,944
2010	107,531	(20,785)	74	5.538	18,019
2011	116,550	(26,767)	72	5.953	18,014
2012	112,130	(33,181)	70	5.236	17,439
2013	95,771	(44,524)	70	4.449	16,604
2014	99,519	(31,744)	72	4.202	16,243
2015	91,268	(32,529)	70	4.394	16,271
2016	88,997	(44,900)	N/A	5.486	13,947
2017	90,843	(47,760)	73	5.342	13,592
2018	103,490	(67,327)	77	5.203	12,437
2019	147,500	(55,451)	81	5.290	11,740
2020	94,989	(34,642)	74	2.541	10,779
2021	94,989	(50,101)	66	2.657	8,558
2022	172,038	(88,008)	80	4.281	8,031

Destinations

As of November 2019, PIA serves 19 domestic and 28 international destinations in 20 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America.

PIA with its Interline agreements and codeshare partner airlines, offers a wider choice of travel in 102 international destinations in 40 countries across the world with different flight connections.

Codeshare agreements

PIA has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:

• China Southern Airlines
• Emirates
• Etihad Airways
• Thai Airways International
• Turkish Airlines
• Kenya Airways

Interline agreements

PIA has interline agreements with the following airlines:

• Air Canada
• Air China
• Air France
• All Nippon Airways
• Batik Air Malaysia
• FlyDubai
• Flynas
• Malaysia Airlines
• Scandinavian Airlines
• SriLankan Airlines
• Swiss International Air Lines
• WestJet

Cargo SPA agreements

PIA has cargo special pro-rate agreements with the following airlines:

• Air Canada
• Air China
• American Airlines
• British Airways
• Delta Air Lines
• Egyptair
• Emirates
• Gulf Air
• Kenya Airways
• Korean Air
• Malaysia Airlines
• Philippine Airlines
• Qantas
• Saudia
• SriLankan Airlines
• Thai Airways International
• Turkish Airlines
• United Airlines

Fleet

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Total owned fleet

As of June 2024, Pakistan International Airlines operates the following aircraft: