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Unending Misery

Following the May 22 crash, PIA has a chance to rise above other airlines and demonstrate to the world that it is a more caring air carrier.

By Khawaja Amer | February 2021

unending-misery

The Friday afternoon of May 22, 2020, was supposed to be a day of celebration for 99 families of Pakistan as they were set to celebrate Eid al-Fitr festivities together, after two months of separation due to the Covid-19 lockdown. But destiny had something else in store for them. PIA flight PK8303 which was to unite the near and dear ones in a couple of minutes crashed in a densely-populated residential area near Karachi's Jinnah International Airport while it was making its second attempt to land. The incident not only shattered the families of the air crash victims but the nation as a whole. Two people were fortunate enough to survive the crash, while 97 were killed. It was a great tragedy for the families of the deceased as they instantly became victims of depression, utter helplessness and the belief that life could be this painful.

Naim Beg, who lost his only son Mirza Waheed Beg, a 27-year-old with dreams of a bright future in his eyes, was made to run from pillar to post to find his son’s remains. What he saw at the site of the accident is a bit too frustrating. PIA staff were not there to identify the luggage. Strangely enough, there were some neatly pressed clothes instead of burnt clothes and a couple of other items except laptops and tablets. Surprisingly enough, there were no cell phones, probably because these may have contained some informative videos taken by the passengers. After the extremely painful process of identifying the body, like other family members of the deceased, Naim Beg is still trying to get compensation under the law.

According to Beg, the families of the deceased have received an initial amount of Rs. 1 million from the federal government. Now PIA is offering Rs. 10 million to the families on the condition that they will sign an indemnity bond. The families have refused to sign such a bond as there is the Peshawar High Court ruling on the Air Blue air crash case that has categorically barred families from signing such a document. This has also been endorsed by the Karachi Ombudsman. Moreover, Naim Beg argues that when PIA gets Rs. 1 billion as passenger insurance from the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL), paying Rs. 10 million to the families of the deceased is just peanuts -- in fact, the deepest of insults to families.

PIA took the credit of convincing the insurance company to pay an amount of Rs10 million per passenger instead of Rs5 million as allowed as the maximum limit in the Carriage by Air Act of 2012. And, to settle the issue, the CEO of PIA offered an online meeting with the families of the deceased which they refused and instead proposed a person-to-person meeting. The families argue that they cannot trust PIA as the latter can manipulate the meeting by publicizing their version of the meeting on media and downplaying the families’ version, which may give a wrong impression in the press. So far, no family of any survivor has accepted PIA’s offer and, as such, the discussions could drag on for months. In short the grieving relatives are still struggling to get the monetary compensation as promised to them.

press-conference
Relatives of the plane crash victims speaking at a press conference.
It goes without saying that no price can ever match a person’s life and that no matter how much money is given to the families of the deceased, it can never bring the dead back. Such accidents, irrespective of their reasons, cause irreparable trauma and personal losses to the families of those travelling and massive losses to the airlines as well. The lost aircraft are normally replaced by the insurance company. But the most tragic part is the fact that relatives of those who lose their lives in these unfortunate incidents have to run from pillar to post for the compensation and, in many cases, the settlement takes years. The delay in compensation adds to the worries and financial problems of the families.

This is an unending tale of miseries. It has been months since the tragedy occurred but the victims’ family members are still waiting for recompense. It is necessary that those concerned with the administration of justice should take a closer look at the recent aircraft accidents in Pakistan and give justice to the families of the victims. Most of the victims were the sole bread-earners for their families and delay in the payment of compensation has made their life more miserable. They need expeditious and inexpensive justice.

There was a general complaint from the victims’ families that though the newspapers and electronic media showed a huge number of suitcases being handed over to PIA staff by the rangers at the crash site, not even half of that was shown to the families. Above all, there was no PIA staff for two days at the 2 mortuaries while families ran around.

According to Naim Baig, the Peshawar High Court barred the airline not to make the families sign an indemnity (not passengers) but possibly half the families have signed off an indemnity because of individual economic issues. Others have requested the court approving succession certificates to get the money transferred to the court so heirs may get it without going and signing an indemnity. However, at least in one case, the court has asked PIA to do so far (more requests are with the court)

The CEO met the families at the PIA Training Centre and to all questions raised by the victims’ families, he shifted responsibility to other departments. Since that meeting, despite many requests, he has not met the families.

Timely compensation gives the injured and the kin the strength to continue their livelihood and make flying a better experience for everyone. Moreover, it helps in upholding the reputation of the airline and all the stakeholders involved. Therefore, the moral principle demands early disbursement of the right amount to the heirs of the deceased and getting into petty litigation disputes must be avoided as much as possible.

PIA says it has completed the spadework and is awaiting certificates of guardianship and/or succession from the legal heirs of the victims for an expeditious process to take place so that early payments can be made. But then, since the families of the deceased are not ready to sign the indemnity bond as per the ruling of the Peshawar High Court, PIA can at least accept their demand of a personal meeting with the concerned officials instead of an online meeting. PIA must definitely have many lessons to learn from other aviation accidents that occur around the world all the time. Perhaps this is one area where it can rise above other airlines.

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