Pakistan, April 10 -- After more than two decades of financial turbulence, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has finally reported a profit. An operational profit, to be precise, of PKR 9.3 billion ($33.14 million) for the fiscal year 2024. Too good to be true, right?

According to the country's defence minister, this miracle occurred despite the "people of #Pakistan (losing) hope on 'once a pride of the nation" due to "rigorous steps adopted by the GoP, implementing comprehensive reforms entailing cost & workforce rationalization, routes optimization & financial discipline with balance sheet restructuring."

He failed to recognize that the very steps he took pride in resulted in profitability that was largely superficial. This was pri...