PIA appoints new CEO as it braces for privatization

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has appointed new CEO as it braces for privatization.

Pakistan’s flag carrier airline appointed former Air Vice Marshal Muhammad Amir Hayat as CEO for one year, a spokesperson of PIA told Reuters.

The government could have appointed Hayat as CEO for three years, but the prime minister decided to appoint him for one year, PIA spokesperson Abdullah Khan said.

Hayat had been serving as the acting CEO since April 2022, after the former chief executive’s retirement.

The outgoing government stated that it planned to privatize loss-making PIA, which has accumulated hundreds of billions of rupees in losses and arrears.

The move would be in line with an International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal.

As reported earlier, the federal government has prepared a major plan to run PIA, which was drowning in debt, under a public-private partnership with foreign capital and restructure the national carrier.

Under the PIA revival plan, a new holding company will be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and all the assets as well as liabilities of the national carrier will be transferred to it.

The PIA will be incorporated into the holding firm as a debt-free subsidiary company.