Three PIA bosses found guilty in aircraft sale probe

LAHORE - Pakistan International Airlines, in an internal inquiry, has found three of its top officials guilty of gross violations of rules and regulations, manipulating facts and figures and connivance in appointing a foreigner as technical consultant to achieve their ulterior objectives in the sale of aircraft A-310, six engines and four APUs.

Acting CEO Bernd Hildenbrand, Procurement and Logistics Department Director Air Commodore Imran Akhtar Khan, and Technical Consultant Helmut Bachhofner have been found guilty of causing a financial loss of over Rs500 million to the national flag carrier, the News reported on Saturday.

It comes in the light of a findings by a two-member inquiry committee - comprising Jawed Mansha, acting internal auditor, and Ahmad Rauf, legal consultant – formed last year by the PIA Board of Directors to investigate into the sale process of Airbus A-310 AP BEQ and other allied issues.

The committee completed its task in February and prepared a 34-page report.

The report mentions that the entire sale process was based on mala fide intention as the original tendering process was tampered with to ensure a single bidder to be chosen. It says that the price at which the perfectly functioning A-310 aircraft’s fuselage (body), the six engines and the four auxiliary power units were sold, was even less than their scrap price.

The final report will be submitted to board next week, said PIA Chairman Irfan Elahi.

Hildenbrand, currently on Exist Control List (ECL), is on a 15-day leave. Imran has been repatriated back to the PAF, while Bachhofner has returned to his country after expiry of his contract.