KARACHI, April 28: Pakistan International Airlines has earned an operating profit of Rs1.5 billion for the first quarter of the current year.

According to the quarterly report for the period January-March 2003 presented to the 271st meeting of the PIAC board of directors held here on Monday, the operating profits were up by 37 per cent over the corresponding period last year.

The board has discussed and approved the quarterly accounts.

While apprising the meeting of the main contributing factors for improved earnings, the PIA’s director finance said deployment of extra capacity in high yield markets like the UK, and weeding out of uneconomical routes had helped PIA attain this profitability despite absorbing additional cost on account of increase in fuel prices and suspension of flights to India and the Far Eastern countries.

The meeting was informed that the airline employees would be given pay increase in June with effect from January this year.

The meeting was chaired by PIAC chairman Ahmed Saeed and was attended by secretary finance Nawid Ahsan, director general of Civil Aviation Authority Air Marshal (retd) Salim Arshad, Asad Ali Khan, M.H.K. Khaishgi, Dr Salman Shah and Omar Khan Afridi.—APP