It says it partially restores flight operations on some routes from Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi to Dubai and Gulf countries.
Pakistan has fully restored flight operations to Saudi Arabia and partially resumed flights to Dubai amid widespread disruptions caused by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, the government said. Radio Pakistan reported on Friday.
Tensions in the Middle East rose sharply after US and Israeli airstrikes last week killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior officials, prompting a wave of retaliation from Tehran and widening the conflict across the region. In response to the attacks, Iran launched retaliatory strikes against US military bases in several Gulf countries, significantly expanding the scope of the confrontation.
The situation led several countries to close their airspace.
Citing aviation sources, Radio Pakistan reported today: “Flight operations have been partially restored on some routes from Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi to the Gulf countries. Full flight operations have been restored for Saudi Arabia and partial flight operations for Dubai.”
Read: 578 flights canceled in 5 days amid tensions in the Middle East
Pakistan’s international airports had been experiencing widespread cancellations due to ongoing regional tensions in the Gulf. Since February 28, more than 570 flights to Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, have been cancelled.
Affected airlines included Emirates, Etihad Airways, Air Arabia, Pakistan International Airlines, Airblue, Flydubai and Qatar Airways.
On Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the government had taken comprehensive measures to help Pakistanis stranded in Iran and other Gulf countries.
He said special facilitation tables had been set up to help returning Pakistani nationals. Pakistan’s embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulates in Jeddah and Dubai were actively assisting Pakistani nationals, while similar arrangements had also been established in Tehran, Zahedan and Mashhad.
Officials said disruptions and airspace closures in several Gulf countries had caused Pakistan a revenue shortfall estimated at Rs 20 billion.
Globally, the crisis has caused large-scale disruptions to air travel. Even though governments and airlines organized special flights to evacuate travelers stranded in the region, more than 13,000 flights have been canceled internationally.
According to aviation analysis firm Cirium, flights in the region account for around 900,000 seats each day, indicating that the number of affected travelers could already exceed one million.
