PIA appoints CEO amid financial difficulties
Pakistan's national
carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), has selected former Air Vice
Marshal Muhammad Amir Hayat as its CEO for a duration of one year.
The decision comes at a
time when the outgoing government has announced its intentions to privatize
PIA, a carrier that has experienced significant financial losses and accrued
substantial amounts of arrears over time, amounting to hundreds of billions of
rupees. This step aligns with the terms of an agreement made with the
International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to PIA
spokesperson Abdullah Khan, Muhammad Amir Hayat had been serving as the acting
CEO since April 2022, taking over after the previous CEO's retirement.
In addition to this
development, the Cabinet Committee of Privatization, in the same week,
supported the decision to engage a financial advisor to facilitate transactions
related to the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, an asset owned by PIA Investment
Limited.
PIA has aspirations to
recommence flights to the United Kingdom within the upcoming three months,
after having suspended services since 2020 due to a pilot licensing
controversy.
In alignment with a $3 billion
arrangement made with the IMF, Pakistan has committed to implementing fiscal
discipline measures, including the privatization of financially struggling
assets like PIA.
Source: Khaleej Times