Prime minister Imran Khan Tuesday directed the authorities concerned to develop a comprehensive business plan to revive Pakistan International Airlines as a profitable institution. The premier said this while chairing a meeting to review the ongoing reforms of the carrier. Khan said PIA had become a liability due to the mismanagement and corruption for which taxpayers had to share the burden. Expressing satisfaction on the current PIA administration, the prime minister asked PIA chairman Arshad Malik to develop a comprehensive strategy to overcome the losses the airline was facing. The PIA chairman said that the total deficit of the airline stood at US$2.96b. <br/>
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Two security contracts SA Express had with controversial facilities management company Bosasa, now known as African Global Operations, resulted in over ZAR1m of irregular expenditure, according to a written reply by minister of public enterprises Pravin Gordhan. The minister was replying to DA MP Mponeng Rabotapi, who had asked whether public enterprises had contracted services from Bosasa over the past 10 years. Rabotapi and other DA MPs have been posing questions to govt ministries about whether they have links or contracts with Bosasa, which is being investigated by the Hawks for corruption related to prison contracts. The company has also been in the spotlight for its links to politicians. <br/>
Scoot airline passengers returned to Singapore 2 days later than expected after technical problems left them stranded in Taiwan. Flight TR899 was supposed to depart Taipei Sunday at 4:10pm but an electrical component defect meant the plane had to be grounded while replacement parts were flown in from Singapore, said a Scoot spokesman. The flight was rescheduled for Monday at 11am but the technical issue persisted and put back departure until later in the night. Scoot said that affected customers were provided with refreshments and meals during the delay. This incident is the latest in a string of flight delays that have riled Scoot customers. <br/>
Philippine Airlines may launch flights to Israel within the year, helping to bolster tourism and trade. Manuel Tamayo, undersecretary for aviation at the Department of Transportation, said they were finalising certain details for PAL to carry out flights between Manila and Tel Aviv by Q1 of 2019. Tamayo added that the Philippines was currently working on securing a final agreement with Saudi Arabia to use the latter’s airspace. This, he said, would cut flights to Tel Aviv by more than an hour. A flight between Manila and Tel Aviv without using Saudi Arabia’s airspace could take around 12 and a half hours. Israel’s Ministry of Tourism director Hassan Madah had said that Filipino tourists to Israel more than doubled to 23,500 between 2015 and 2017. They mainly flew through the Hong Kong and Turkish flag carriers. <br/>
A man who says he slipped over in a pool of water in a Jetstar aircraft toilet, and was then asked whether he cleaned the mess up, is suing the airline over a permanent knee injury he says he suffered as a result. The 58-year-old entered the toilet, stepped into a "large pool" of water and immediately slipped, according to a statement of claim filed in the Federal Court in Melbourne. The man says the fall resulted in a bucket-handle displacement to the right knee and other leg injuries, which constitute a permanent disability. Cabin crew then refused to prepare an incident report at the time and the man was told he would have to report his injuries online after the flight, he says. A Jetstar spokesman said the airline disputes the claim and will be defending the matter. <br/>
Passengers on a Frontier flight were stuck on a plane in Tampa for about an hour New Year's Day after several people on board reported feeling sick. Authorities said 6 of the 226 total passengers on Frontier Flight 397 fell ill at some point during the flight from Cleveland to Tampa. Crew members let the passengers know mid-flight and asked anyone else feeling sick to let them know. The 6 people who were sick were not traveling together and are not related. When the plane landed at Tampa International Airport around 3:30 pm, the 6 sick passengers were removed and then held for medical observation. The passengers who were not sick were held on the plane for about an hour after landing. A spokesperson from the airport in Cleveland said there's a possibility the illnesses are connected to a drinking fountain <br/>