Syed Fawad Ali Shah
PIA remains a favored topic of discourse among Pakistan’s intellectual circles, both genuine and pseudo. Naturally, opinions diverge on how to navigate the future of this once illustrious institution. Delving into its history, while tempting, would veer into a realm of glorification that we’d rather sidestep. Yet, it’s undeniable that PIA, in its heyday, epitomized Pakistan’s global aspirations, transcending from a mere airline to a symbol of national pride and international connectivity.
However, the passage of time has seen a lamentable decline in PIA’s standards. What was once a beacon of progress has regrettably dwindled into obscurity, marred by fleeing crew, dilapidated cabins, and a distressing lack of reliability. The 1960s and 70s may have heralded a golden age for Pakistan, and PIA may have thrived amid this zeitgeist. But today, the prevailing sentiment, politically and sartorially correct, calls for governmental divestment, urging swift privatization to relieve the burden on the national coffers.
This narrative, carefully curated by vested interests within the government, underscores a stark reality: the need for a clean break from the status quo. Despite our reluctance to wholly embrace this viewpoint, we’re compelled to acknowledge that the government’s expedited exit from airline ownership might indeed be for the best. Attempting to resurrect PIA under the current governmental framework, fueled by public funds and political partisan scrutiny, seems nothing short of a charade—an unattainable dream amidst bureaucratic inefficiencies and institutional inertia. Afterall this very setup, even at policy level, has ensured that aviation industry in the country does not thrive and remain at the forbearance of foreign operators, mostly hailing from our brotherly Islamic countries and supported by their patrons within Pakistan.
Consequently, we find ourselves contemplating a post-PIA era. Why not focus on a post-privatization scenario, one might ask? A cursory glance at the potential private stakeholders reveals a disconcerting truth. No domestic entity, however affluent or ostensibly patriotic, possesses the acumen or altruism to resurrect PIA’s former glory. In simpler words, there is no TATA here. Profit motives inevitably eclipse any semblance of national pride, leaving us with a bleak prognosis.
In all likelihood, the reins of PIA will be handed over to foreign entities—governments or airlines—unperturbed by its legacy as Pakistan’s national carrier. Their calculus will revolve, not around national service, but around profit maximization. This foreign intervention heralds the inevitable demise of the PIA brand, consigned to oblivion as it becomes a mere blip in the global aviation game.
With this ominous backdrop, envisage a Pakistan with five indigenous airlines, offering domestic fares exorbitantly priced beyond the reach of the common citizen. Only major cities; Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad and occasionally Peshawar and Multan, would remain connected, while peripheral region will languish in isolation, bereft of economic and educational opportunities. The specter of social disenfranchisement looms large, exacerbated by a government beholden to commercial interests rather than societal welfare. The constituents will push their representative for increased flights in the echelons of power, only to get a reply back through the regulator that commercial airlines do not consider those to have significant potential.
Internationally, the void left by PIA’s demise is swiftly filled by foreign carriers, triggering a surge in airfares on lucrative routes. Whilst dynamics on gulf routes will remain competitive and the umra and hajj remaining more or less the same, the once affordable western routes will become a luxury, perpetuating a gaping chasm between the privileged few and the marginalized many. The intrinsic value of national connectivity, fundamental to progress and development, is sacrificed at the altar of profit margins. Case in point, and as an example of having a direct national airline, operating on a route, 7 years ago when PIA was offering New York – Pakistan service, average fares of all the players were $700-770 round trip. Now they start at $2000 with executive cabins starting from $3700. That is the impact, that a carrier like PIA, can have on a route. Same situation prevailing between pre-PIA Ban UK and now. Coming back again to the post-PIA era, situation indeed seems dire, specially considering that the government does not seem to have any plan on how to tackle the gap and the surging demand that will arise after PIA.
In the face of this impending crisis, one cannot help but ponder: will the skies become the exclusive domain of the elite? The erosion of affordable air travel threatens to exacerbate societal divides, relegating countless Pakistanis to the margins of mobility. As we confront this uncertain future, the government’s inertia in addressing these concerns speaks volumes.
Best lesson from history is that men of power never take a lesson from the history. The matter of an ailing air service is not unique to us. There are many examples which should have been studied before an expedition was initiated by a care taker government to take credit for something which has not been done before. Alitalia was also once a great airline and ironically it had the same set of challenges as our beloved national carrier. They tried selling it to a brotherly Islamic country of ours, that in turn closed it down, disregarding the legacy of once an icon of any airline. Well guess what, Italy has another national carrier now, Air Italia. So not in a distant future, on a day, we might find ourselves reading a news declaration, from welfare savvy government, announcing a new national airline, let’s call it ‘Pakistan Airways’, in support with retired officers of a certain armed force, to serve the people of Pakistan. Well! the wheel would again be invented.
The skies above Pakistan, though fraught with uncertainty, harbor both promise and peril. Whether PIA’s rebirth heralds a new dawn of unity or succumbs to the weight of inequality remains to be seen. Yet, one thing remains immutable: the onus of steering its course toward a fair and inclusive future, rests squarely on the shoulders of the government, and then on all the Pakistanis. Let us ensure that, even amidst transformation; sanity prevails in the echelons of power and that government retains a sizeable stake, albeit sans management control, to immediately arrest a sinking situation, if it comes may.
