Tonight, a delegation consisting of seven members led by Secretary of Aviation Saif Anjum will depart for Indonesia with the aim of resolving a two-year dispute concerning two Airbus 320 planes that Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) returned to a leasing company in September 2021.
The delegation, which also includes PIA CEO Amir Hayat, the Chief Technical Officer, and the Chief Financial Officer, will depart from Islamabad and head to Kuala Lumpur.
The leasing company declined to accept the aircraft’s return, citing non-compliance with the contract’s specified criteria.
Since then, PIA has been incurring expenses for these aircraft, which have been parked in Indonesia.
In an attempt to resolve the issue, PIA has also proposed purchasing the aircraft for an additional $30 million, but the leasing company has not yet responded.
The delegation views its visit to Indonesia as a final effort to settle the dispute and repatriate the two aircraft to Pakistan.
In 2012, PIA leased the two Airbus 320 planes from AirAsia. The lease agreement concluded in September 2021, at which point PIA returned the planes to the lessor.
AirAsia, however, declined to accept the aircraft, asserting that they were not in satisfactory condition.
PIA insists that they returned the aircraft in good condition, refuting the claims made against them.
This prolonged dispute has persisted for two years and has resulted in significant costs for PIA, including parking fees and other expenses.
