The flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Emirates Airline, has decided to establish a cargo business center at Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport.
Emirates has reportedly applied for 90,000 square feet of space at Karachi airport’s cargo terminal. The decision to create a cargo center in Karachi comes in response to the growing demand for cargo business.
Emirates currently handles the largest cargo business in Karachi, with over 27,000 tonnes of cargo transported from Karachi alone in 2024.
On the contrary, due to lack of attention and proper planning, PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) could only handle 2,000 tons of cargo from Karachi in 2024.
Sources indicate that in response to Emirates’ request, the Airports Authority has begun work on allocating space at the cargo terminal.
A month ago, Emirates officially launched its new travel store in Karachi, making it the airline’s first experiential retail concept implemented in West Asia.
The store was inaugurated by Essa Sulaiman Ahmad, Emirates Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations for West Asia and the Indian Ocean, in the presence of Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Bakheet Ateeq Al-Rumaithi, Consul General of the UAE in Karachi, who was also present at the event, highlighted the strong ties between the UAE and Pakistan.
Talking about participation in the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Essa Sulaiman Ahmad said: “We are concentrating more on our own airline and are not thinking of buying any stake or airline company. We have just spent 2 billion dollars to modernize our planes. We are definitely looking at our own growth.”
