Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has suspended its flights to and from Swat’s Saidu Shrif airport, rendering it non-operational again.
The national flag carrier cancelled Islamabad-Saidu Sharif flights due to lack of the required number of passengers.
In March, the Saidu Sharif airport was made operational on a request by the airline. PIA’s inaugural flight had landed at the airport on March 26, marking resumption of flights to Saidu Sharif after 17 years.
The national airline had announced to operate two flights from Lahore and Islamabad to Saidu Sharif in a week.The Saidu Sharif airport had been non-operational since 2004 after the national flag carrier ceased to operate commercial flights to this destination due to security reasons.
The national flag carrier stopped offering commercial flights to this station in 2014, resulting in the Saidu Sharif airport becoming non-operational.
The CAA has spent a great deal of money renovating the runway and parking lot of the airport. Every other department was instructed to make the required preparations, including as staffing the airport with appropriate personnel, so that it could begin operations by March 25.
On the other hand, following PIA’s letter to the CAA requesting that all essential provisions be made at the airport, the CAA finalized all of the arrangements at Saidu Sharif airport. The airport is capable of handling small aircraft, such as ATR-70, and has the infrastructure to manage domestic operations in place since September 2019.
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