It was not until the early nineties there was a major growth in the Pakistani aviation market with four new private airlines launching operations. The airline did very well to compete with the well established flag carrier, PIA which was controlled by the government. However, this was not to last as the UN placed economic sanctions on Pakistan and its neighbour, India that caused the airline market to suffer. It caused two airlines of the airlines to file for bankruptcy and liquidate its assets. The airline industry remained quite stable with PIA developing a strong hold on the international and domestic market for many years. It was not until the early 21st century that the industry started to pick up again that allowed the entry of a new carrier in the market, Airblue which launched operations with new state of the art aircraft. As of August 2007, the aviation market is developing and allowing more services and facilities to be inaugurated as well the development of a brand new airport to be built for the capital at Fateh Jang.
Current Airlines
Aero Asia International
Aero Asia International was a private airline based in Karachi, Pakistan. It operated domestic and international services. Its main base was Jinnah International Airport, Karachi. However, since May 2007 the airline was suspended from flying for failing to meet safety standards.
Destinations
Aero Asia International provides the following services:Pakistan
- Faislabad - Faisalabad International Airport
- Islamabad - Islamabad International Airport
- Karachi - Jinnah International Airport
- Lahore - Allama Iqbal International Airport
- Multan - Multan International Airport
- Peshawar - Peshawar International Airport
- Sukkur - Sukkur Airport
Middle East
- Abu Dhabi - Abu Dhabi International Airport
- Al Ain - Al Ain International Airport
- Doha - Doha International Airport
- Dubai - Dubai International Airport
- Muscat - Seeb International Airport
Former
Aero Asia operated to Bishkek and Sharjah in the past, as well as to domestic cities Gwadar, Pasni and Quetta.Airblue
Airblue is a private airline based in Karachi, Pakistan. It is a scheduled domestic and international airline operating 30 daily services linking seven domestic destinations and international services to Dubai and Manchester. Its main base is Jinnah International Airport, Karachi.Destinations
Air Blue serves the following cities:Pakistan
- Karachi (Jinnah International Airport)
- Lahore (Allama Iqbal International Airport)
- Islamabad (Islamabad International Airport)
- Peshawar (Peshawar International Airport)
- Quetta (Quetta International Airport)
- Faisalabad (Faisalabad International Airport)
- Gwadar (Gwadar International Airport)
Middle East
- Amman (Queen Alia International Airport) [starts December 2007/January 2008]
- Dubai (Dubai International Airport)
- Muscat (seeb International Airport) [starts December 2007/January 2008]
- Trabzon (Trabzon Airport) refuel stop only
Europe
- Manchester (Manchester International Airport)
Former
Air Blue used to serve Nawabshah this may be resumed in the future through a joint service operated by JS Air.Planned
Air Blue plan to launch Colombo, Dhaka, Delhi, Istanbul and Mumbai in the future. Oslo is rumored to be on the cards as well but Air Blue have not reported this.Pakistan International Airlines
Pakistan International Airlines Corporation, more commonly known as Pakistan International Airlines or PIA, is the national flag carrier airline of Pakistan, based in Karachi. It operates scheduled services to 46 destinations throughout Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America, as well as an extensive domestic network linking 24 destinations. It is the only state-owned airline in the country since independence. Its main bases are Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, the Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore and the Islamabad International Airport, Islamabad/Rawalpindi. The airline also has secondary bases, including Peshawar International Airport, Faisalabad International Airport, Quetta International Airport and Multan International Airport, from which it connects the metropolitan cities with the main bases, Middle East and Far East. The airline has also been chosen as the official airline for the "Destination Pakistan 2007" celebrations. The airline is owned by the Government of Pakistan (87%) and other shareholders (13%). It has 19,263 employees (at March 2007).
Destinations
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) currently serves the following destinations.
Asia
East
* China, People's Republic ofo Beijing (Beijing Capital International Airport)
o Hong Kong (Hong Kong International Airport)
* Japan
o Tokyo (Narita International Airport)
South
* Bangladesh
o Dhaka (Zia International Airport)
* India
o Delhi (Indira Gandhi International Airport)
o Mumbai (Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport)
* Nepal
o Kathmandu (Tribhuvan International Airport)
* Pakistan
o Balochistan
+ Dalbandin (Dalbandin Airport)
+ Gwadar (Gwadar International Airport)
+ Panjgur (Panjgur Airport)
+ Pasni (Pasni Airport)
+ Quetta (Quetta International Airport)
+ Turbat (Turbat Airport)
+ Zhob (Zhob Airport (resuming)
o Islamabad Capital Territory
+ Islamabad/Rawalpindi (Islamabad International Airport) Hub
o Northern Areas
+ Gilgit (Gilgit Airport)
+ Skardu (Skardu Airport)
o North West Frontier Province (NWFP)
+ Chitral (Chitral Airport)
+ Peshawar (Peshawar International Airport) Focus City
+ Swat (Saidu Sharif Airport)
o Punjab
+ Bahawalpur (Bahawalpur Airport)
+ Dera Ghazi Khan (Dera Ghazi Khan Airport)
+ Faisalabad (Faisalabad International Airport)
+ Lahore (Allama Iqbal International Airport) Hub
+ Multan (Multan International Airport)
+ Rahim Yar Khan (Shaikh Zayed International Airport)
o Sindh
+ Jacobabad (Jacobabad Airbase)
+ Karachi (Jinnah International Airport) Hub
+ Moenjodaro (Moenjodaro Airport)
+ Sukkur (Sukkur Airport)
Southeast
* Malaysia
o Kuala Lumpur (Kuala Lumpur International Airport)
* Thailand
o Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi International Airport)
Southwest
* Afghanistan
o Kabul (Kabul International Airport)
* Bahrain
o Manama (Bahrain International Airport)
* Kuwait
o Kuwait City (Kuwait International Airport)
* Oman
o Muscat (Seeb International Airport)
* Qatar
o Doha (Doha International Airport)
* Saudi Arabia
o Dammam (King Fahd International Airport)
o Jeddah (King Abdulaziz International Airport)
o Riyadh (King Khalid International Airport)
* United Arab Emirates
o Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi International Airport)
o Al Ain (Al Ain International Airport)
o Dubai (Dubai International Airport)
o Sharjah (Sharjah International Airport)
Europe
* Denmark
o Copenhagen (Copenhagen Airport)
* France
o Paris (Charles de Gaulle International Airport)
* Germany
o Cologne (Cologne-Bonn Airport) (Cargo)
* Italy
o Milan (Malpensa International Airport)
o Rome (Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport)
* Norway
o Oslo (Gardermoen Airport)
* Turkey
o Istanbul (Atatürk International Airport)
* United Kingdom
o Birmingham (Birmingham International Airport)
o Glasgow (Glasgow International Airport) [resumes 1 October 2007]
o London
+ (London Heathrow Airport)
+ (London Luton Airport) (Cargo)
o Manchester (Manchester Airport) Focus City
North America
* Canada
o Toronto (Toronto Pearson International Airport)
* United States
o Chicago (O'Hare International Airport) [ends September 11, 2007]
o New York City (John F. Kennedy International Airport)
Former Destinations
- Africa: Cairo, Dar es Salaam, Johannesburg, Kano, Kilimanjaro, Nairobi, Tripoli.
- Asia/Caucasus & Central: Almaty, Ashkabad, Baku, Tashkent.
- Asia/East & Southeast: Guangzhou, Jakarta, Manila, Shanghai, Singapore, Urumqi, Yangon.
- Asia/South: Colombo, Male.
- Asia/Southwest: Amman, Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus, Dhahran, Fujairah, Kandahar, Mashhad, Ras al Khaimah, Sanaa, Tehran, Zahedan.
- Europe: Amsterdam, Athens, Frankfurt, Geneva, London Stansted Airport, Moscow, Paris Orly Airport, Shannon, Tirana, Vienna, Zurich.
- North America: Chicago (from September 11, 2007), Houston, Washington, D.C.
- Pakistan: Bannu, Dadu, Dera Ismail Khan, Hyderabad, Jiwani, Khuzdar, Mianwali, Mirpur Khas, Muzaffarabad, Nawabshah, Ormara, Parachinar, Rawlakot, Sehwan, Sui, Zhob(to resume).
Shaheen Air International
Shaheen Air International is a Pakistani private airline based in Karachi. It mainly operates scheduled services in the main cities of Pakistan and to the Gulf. Its main base is Jinnah International Airport (KHI), Karachi, with a hub at Islamabad International Airport (ISB), Islamabad.
Destinations
Shaheen Air International operates the following services (at February 2007):Pakistan
- Islamabad (Islamabad International Airport)
- Karachi (Jinnah International Airport)
- Lahore (Allama Iqbal International Airport)
- Multan (Multan International Airport)
- Peshawar (Peshawar International Airport)
- Quetta (Quetta International Airport)
Middle East
- Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi International Airport)
- Al Ain (Al Ain International Airport)
- Doha (Doha International Airport)
- Dubai (Dubai International Airport)
- Kuwait (Kuwait International Airport)
- Muscat (Seeb International Airport)
Former
- Shaheen used to serve Faisalabad.
Planned
- Shaheen Air has been allowed to fly UK and USA.
Cargo Airlines
- DHL Cargo Pakistan
- Pakistan International Cargo
- Royal Airlines Cargo
- Star Air
- TCS Couriers
Charter Airlines
- Askari Aviation
- AST Pakistan Airways
- Jahangir Siddiqui Charter
- JS Air (Private) Limited
- Lynx Aviation
- Pakistan Aviators & Aviation
- Royal Airlines
- Schon Air
- Princely Jets
PIA OFFICES ABROAD
COUNTRY CITY PHONE
Australia Sydney 612-267-4399
Austria Vienna 71441011
Bahrain Bahrain 223-808/274-424
Bangladesh Chittagong 501993/505966
Bangladesh Dhaka 502668/501112
Canada Toronto Toll Free: 1800-387-1355
Canada Toronto 926-8747/8868/9623
China Beijing 86-10-5051681-82-83
Denmark Copenhagen 3314-1833/3314-6970
England Birmingham 0121-643-7850/7032/5210
England Bradford 1274-731-705
England London 0171-499-5500
England Manchester 161-839-7506
France Paris 161-839-7506
Germany Berlin 030-8854-800/801
Germany Frankfurt 069-69024281
Germany Dusseldorf 0049-211-370361/362
Germany Frankfurt 069-27390122
Germany Munich 089-292229
Greece Athens 3231931/3223573
Holland Amsterdam 6264710
Hong Kong Hong Kong 23664747
India Bombay 202-1455/202-01373
India Delhi 331361/62/63
Indonesia Jakarta 6221-5712444
Italy Milan 02-867773/5-862234
Italy Rome 6/4884662-3
Japan Osaka 06-6445-1745
Japan Tokyo 03-3216-6511/14
Kuwait Kuwait City 0965-2421040/043/044/045
Libya Tripoli 444-6229/444-8925
Malaysia Kuala Lumpur 2425444
Nepal Kathmandu 223102
Norway Muscat 837740/41/42
Oman Muscat 95-1-287806
Oman Salahla 291647
Philippines Manila 818-3711-14
Qatar Doha 426290-6 lines
S. Arabia Abha 2223073/77
S. Arabia Dammam 8422323
S. Arabia Dhahran 891-2288/891-1667
S. Arabia Jeddah 6422642-07
S. Arabia Jubail 033-612427
S. Arabia Makkah 5484645
S. Arabia Medina 8241741/8232270/8253684
S. Arabia Riyadh 4659600-05
S. Arabia Yanbo 3223241
Singapore Singapore 2512322/250973/2540979
Spain Madrid 341-548-2239/2561
Sri Lanka Colombo 573475/575052
Thailand Bangkok 2342961/40
Turkey Istanbul 2330571/2
UAE Abu Dhabi (971-2) 261117/326260
UAE Al Ain 641735 657404
UAE Dubai 220589-272748
UAE Dubai 822151-822152
UK Glasgow 01041-221-9936
USA Chicago 263 3082
USA Detroit 248-569-7790
USA Houston 713-520-0873
USA New York 212-370-9155/9150
USA Washington 202-466-4994/2671/3057
