Extra Fuel Consumption Due to Longer Flight Route

[Abbas Ali]

CAA’s apathy Domestic airlines incurring fuel losses

Javed Mirza

Thursday, March 29, 2012

KARACHI: All domestic airlines including Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) are incurring huge financial losses in terms of extra fuel consumption due to inability of the Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) to give full concentration to domestic traffic due to over-burdened controllers and substandard navigational equipment.

This is in addition to the loss PIA already incurring on fuel consumption, which was also admitted by Deputy Managing Director Salim Sayani while briefing a delegation of Civil Servants (participants of National Management Course of National School of Public Policy) on March 20th. He said that PIA’s fuel cost as a percentage of revenues had increased from 42 percent to 54 percent in 2011.

According to aviation sources in the Flight Information Region (FIR), which include Lahore and Karachi, PIA is losing 715 nautical miles, Shaheen Air 411 nautical miles, and Airblue 292 nautical miles on daily basis just because their airplanes are not being given track shortening by ATCs at the said airports. Previously, all these airlines were saving a total of 1418 nautical miles a day.

As per sources the loss of fuel, due to ATCs inability to work out route shortenings, was also endorsed by the office of Chief Pilot Coordination, PIA Flight Operation, that PIA was facing additional losses due to go slow by the ATCs of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) as only in one day they lost Rs3.1 million on extra fuel consumption.

The ATCs of CAA have been highlighting hazards to flight safety due to over burdened controllers who are denied rest between continuous duty spans and other related matters. But so far the CAA has not given any importance resulting in ATCs prioritising the matter as per flight safety in Pakistan air space.

As per International Civil Aviation Organisation the ATCs would be given a rest of at least two hours after every two working hours during night and one hour rest after four hour duty during the day.

The ATCs in Pakistan are working straight for 10-12 hours without any break while many of basic facilities such as transport, refreshment and even drinking water is not available.It is no wonder that airspace congestion and workload of ATCs has been increased manifold in the last 5-6 years, which is to have massive increase in future as well, ex GM PIA and ATC M. Azkar said.

Industry sources said that the role of ATCs was very important because they would help airlines reduce their fuel consumption while managing heavy traffic at the same time. Given the fact that International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) forecasts tremendous transit air traffic growth rise in the Asia Pacific and Middle East region by 2025, Pakistan’s airspace would be highly congested because the country is strategically located in the region where major air traffic routes over-flown through its airspace from/to Europe and Middle/Far East. This congestion will lead to massive air traffic block and unnecessary holdings of domestic planes, consequently fuel consumption would increase massively.

Source: The News

[newflyer]

It won't be shocking if we see a disaster if the conditions remain the same.

[faisal-777]

It looks like Allah is doing a good job of ATC so far in Pakistan. Dont know when He changes his mood about it !

[TAILWIND]

It looks like Allah is doing a good job of ATC so far in Pakistan. Dont know when He changes his mood about it !

what has 'extra fuel consumption' to do with duty periods and rest of the controllers?. I have been unable to make out head from toe in this investigative reporting.

[faisal-777]

It looks like Allah is doing a good job of ATC so far in Pakistan. Dont know when He changes his mood about it !

what has 'extra fuel consumption' to do with duty periods and rest of the controllers?. I have been unable to make out head from toe in this investigative reporting.

Nothing to do with fuel consumption. I was just saying that ATCs being heavily busy and with go-slow policy, there is a chance of disaster waiting to happen but so far so good.