Just as a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) air hostess was granted bail in a case involving the smuggling of foreign currency, the government’s highest executive bodies were deliberating on the airline’s privatization. The coincidence of these two events on the same day underscores how far the national airline has declined. Once a symbol of national pride, PIA is now more often associated with scandals involving employees seeking quick gains at the expense of travelers and the country’s reputation than with providing quality air travel without heavy government subsidies.

The government’s confidence in finalizing PIA’s privatization in the coming months is a positive sign of progress. It represents a win-win situation: Pakistan will rid itself of a financial burden—an unwieldy “white elephant” that has become too costly to maintain.

In private hands, PIA could potentially revive its fortunes by focusing on efficiency and profit rather than the patronage politics and mismanagement that have led to its downfall. A successful privatization of PIA would serve as a powerful symbol of the government’s commitment to reducing expenditures and could pave the way for the privatization of other state-owned enterprises. This would include electric distribution companies, steel mills, and other non-essential businesses that the government has acquired over the years and subsequently run into the ground through mismanagement.

PIA’s privatization is thus a crucial benchmark that must be achieved swiftly if the government’s broader economic reform agenda is to be realized.