The Pakistani government is on track to sell a majority stake in PIA - Pakistan International Airlines (PK, Islamabad International) this week. In September, the government deferred the airline's auction date until October 30, 2024, due to bidder discontent over some sale conditions. Now, in the final week of October, the end-of-month auction date remains intact.

Six entities have pre-qualified to bid for a 60% stake in PIA, including Fly Jinnah, AirBlue, Arif Habib Corporation, and three consortia led by YB Holdings (Private) Limited, Pak Ethanol, and Blue World City. As reported in ch-aviation, some or all of the bidders had expressed concerns about certain sale conditions, including that they retain all of PIA's 7,300+ employees for at least two years and make payments to the country's pension and benefits regime.

Some or all bidders also wanted a one-year warranty for 18 aircraft and protection against ongoing litigation. The warranties relate to the aircraft's condition, record-keeping accuracy, and information about parts and maintenance. At the time, a government spokesperson said talks were underway to resolve the issues.

Now, Pakistani news outlets report that Parliamentary Secretary for Communications Gul Asghar told the country's parliament last week that the PIA auction will go ahead on October 30.

Meanwhile, the same outlets are reporting on PIA's ongoing problem with grounded aircraft, noting that ten remain on the ground 12 months after going out of service. This is due to delays in procuring the required spare parts and engine inspections not happening. The newspapers say this stems from neglect and poor planning at the management level.

The ch-aviation fleets module reveals that 16 of PIA's 32 aircraft are on the ground for assorted reasons, including seven out of seventeen A320-200s, two of three ATR42-500s, three of six B777-200ERs, one of two B777-200LRs, and three of four B777-300ERs. As a result, PIA is regularly cancelling scheduled flights. However, the airline does intend to use one of its operational B777-200 types on a new weekly roundtrip service between Islamabad and Beijing Capital starting early next month.

In addition to PIA's partial privatisation, the sale of Islamabad’s international airport is scheduled for November as part of the government’s broader privatisation agenda.