- Anwar Zeb
- 17 Minutes ago

PIA continues to face flight disruptions amidst financial crunch
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- Web Desk
- Oct 31, 2023

ISLAMABAD: At least 23 flights of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) could not take off the ground on Tuesday as the national flag carrier continues to face fund shortages.
Sources said that the PIA had sought Rs25 billion from the Civil Aviation Ministry but the latter could release only Rs8 billion, forcing the national flag carrier to resort to cancellation of several domestic and international flights.
As a result of the cancellation of flights, a large number of passengers stranded at various airports.
The PIA has urgently sought financial assistance from the government to restore its flight operations.
The airline has received a partial bailout of Rs 8 billion from the aviation ministry, enabling it to resume limited domestic flight operations. This has led to the resumption of service to Gilgit, Skardu, Karachi, and Quetta.
However, the situation remains dire for passengers traveling between Karachi and Quetta, as this route has been experiencing prolonged disruptions for over a week.
A recent flight from Karachi to Quetta, scheduled to depart at 10am finally took off with a seven-hour delay at 5pm, causing significant frustration among passengers.
Numerous other domestic flights have also been suspended, including those flying between Karachi and Islamabad (PK368, PK369, PK370), Karachi and Sukkur (PK536, PK537), and Karachi and Turbat (PK501 and PK502).
International flights have not been spared either, Lahore flight schedule today faced disruptions with Lahore to Muscat (PK165, PK166), Lahore to Sharjah (PK185, PK186, PK294), and Sialkot to Dubai (PK179, PK180) among the routes affected by the cancellations.
Furthermore, flights from Islamabad to Dubai (PK233, PK212) and Quetta (PK325), as well as Islamabad to Sharjah (PK181) and Peshawar to Abu Dhabi (PK217), have also been suspended.
Sources said that the resumption of normal flight operations hinge on the government’s decision regarding the requested bailout package.
