A leaked flight data report has revealed August was not a banner month for punctuality at Pakistan International Airlines.
According to a news report by dawn.com more than half of all flights in August – 56% – were delayed and 7% were cancelled.
The report said the single largest factor for delays and cancellations was ‘engineering’ problems, highlighting an aging fleet and inefficient maintenance.
The PIA flight data showed that 288 delays and 60 cancelations were as a result of engineering holdups while almost 200 flights were late due to information technology glitches.
According to company sources, PIA sets an on-time target of 85%.
Of the 2,453 flights it operated in August, just 44% arrived on time.
Last week PIA Chairman Muhammad Ali Gardezi said the airline is planning to add 10 more A-320 aircraft on lease from early next year ‘to meet capacity requirement’ while grounding Boeing 747 planes.
"The rationale behind replacing the existing fleet of aircraft with new generation planes is to save fuel since new aircraft are fuel efficient," he said.
