PIA resumes London flights after a pause of six years
Pakistan
International Airlines (PIA) launched its first direct flight from
Islamabad to London in six years on Sunday, following a special inauguration
ceremony at Islamabad International Airport.
The national carrier plans to operate four
weekly flights between Islamabad and London’s Heathrow Airport, using Terminal
4, according to a PIA spokesperson.
The inaugural flight, PK-785, was flagged off by Defence Secretary Lt Gen (r) Muhammad Ali, British High Commissioner Jane Marriott, and PIA Consortium Chairman Arif Habib, who jointly cut the ribbon, reported state-run Pakistan TV.
Read More PIA
to resume London flights on March 29 after six-year gap
Originally scheduled for 12:50 pm, the flight
departed slightly delayed at 1:19 pm.
Earlier, on March 26, Defence Minister Khawaja
Asif announced that PIA would begin direct flights from Islamabad and Lahore to
Heathrow on March 29 and 30, respectively.
PIA had received approval last September to resume direct flights to the UK after nearly five years, initially restarting operations to Manchester. The airline had also announced plans to expand services to Birmingham and London.
Source: Dawn