The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has decided to resume three direct flights a week to Turkey.
The national airline plans to operate flights to Turkey’s Istanbul city from Lahore and Islamabad thrice a week from mid-May. PIA had stopped operating flights on this route many years back.
The decision to resume flights from Lahore and Islamabad to Turkey will help fetch significant revenue for the loss-making national entity that is striving to cut operational cost.
It is noteworthy that Federal Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan had last week met Turkey’s Ambassador in Islamabad Ihsan Mustafa Yurdakul and discussed the matters relating to promoting bilateral ties in diverse fields including aviation. During the meeting, the two sides stressed the need for further strengthening the existing long-cherished brotherly relations between Pakistan and Turkey.
Earlier on Sunday, PIA decided to operate flights to Saidu Sharif Airport in Swat. The airport that was closed in 2004 owing to the precarious security situation will be made operational. The national flag carrier will operate a test flight to the airport using an ATR aircraft in the last week of this month, the PIA said and called for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to make arrangements in this regard. The required development work at the Saidu Sharif airport has been carried out.
