Trade Chronicle Jan Feb 2019 Issue

TRADE CHRONICLE
Travel World
Qatar Airways celebrates
operations
Qatar Airways is celebrating its 20th
anniversary of flights to the historical
cultural heart of Pakistan; Lahore, a
statement said recently.
The national carrier of the state-of-
Qatar commenced its operations to
Lahore on 2 January 1999. Mustafa
Alam Siddiqui, Lahore’s commercial
manager of Qatar Airways said the
airline is delighted to be celebrating
20 years of flying to Lahore.
Short and long terms reviving plans for PIA
PIA Chairman Air Marshal Arshad
Mahmood Malik says short-term and
long-term plans are in the works to
revive the airline.
Addressing members of the Faisalabad
Chamber of Commerce and Industry,
he said revival was a daunting
task as compared to launching a new
airline.
The chairman said getting rid of seven
loss-making routes was his first
priority. He said three direct flights
from Faisalabad to Jeddah, would be
introduced from Feb 15. He said two
different teams would visit Faisalabad
next week to review the expansion of
the runway and to evaluate local cargo
potential.
He said 18,000 workers were on
the airline payroll and the number
was high compared to international
standards.
FCC President Syed Zia Alumdar
Hussain and former FPCCI president
Mian Idrees also spoke on the occasion.
ECC approves Rs5.6bln
in loan guarantee for PIA
The Economic Coordination Committee
(ECC) of the cabinet approved
Rs5.6 billion in loan guarantee for the
ailing state-owned Pakistan International
Airlines (PIA) for its overhauling
and new procurement.
“ECC accorded approval for additional
guarantees to PIACL of Rs5.6 billion
for repair and maintenance of engines
and acquisition of related spare parts
for operationalising grounded planes,”
an official statement said. “The step
would strengthen PIACL’s route rationalisation
initiatives and add to revenue
generation of the national flag carrier.”
The committee directed the ministries
to work out the medium to long term
requirement of LNG in the country and
present their recommendations on relocation
of RLNG plants.
“We look forward to introducing
more visitors to the beautiful city
and connect passengers to our rapidly
growing network of more than
160 business and leisure destinations,”
he added. Qatar Airways operates
twice daily flights to Lahore
and is serviced by Boeing 777 and
Airbus A350 aircraft with a spacious
environment throughout the entire
aircraft. Due to the high demand
for frequencies, the airline has 68
weekly flights to Pakistan, including
14 flights to Karachi, 14 Flights to
Islamabad, 14 flights to Lahore and
7 weekly flights to Peshawar, Sialkot
& Multan, and 5 weekly flights to
Faisalabad.
British Airways team
to inspect arrangements at IIA
A four-member team from British
Airways (BA) will be visiting Islamabad
soon to check that security and
handling arrangements are in place
before the airline resumes its flight
to Islamabad in June 2019 after a
10-years gap.
A senior aviation official said that
the BA team- including the directors
transport, marketing and security-
will visit Islamabad to check
if all their requirements have been
addressed at the new Islamabad International
Airport (IIA). He said since
security is a major issue for the British
authorities, the Airport Security Force
and other officials have already been
intimated about the visit of senior BA
officials. Islamabad is one of the longhaul
routes being launched by BA in
2019.
BA had in Sept 2008 suspended all its
flights to Pakistan citing security concerns
in the aftermath of the Marriot
Hotel bombing. In Dec 2018, the airline
had announced that it will be resuming
its flight from Heathrow to Islamabad
from June 2, 2019.
The British authorities have termed
the resumption of BA flights between
London and Islamabad as excellent
news for both countries.
TRADE CHRONICLE - Jan - Feb . 2019 - Page 43