Pakistan International Arlines (PIA) : News / Updates

[Hussain]

Why is PIA so ''excited'' about flying wet-leased aircrafts that would not even have its pilots or crew or logo

chottay logoon ki, chotti chotti khushiaan.....

 

[hydrabadi_arab]

PIA hits 100,000 passenger milestone as it marks 12 months of direct services to Pakistan from Manchester Airport​

PIA hits 100,000 passenger milestone as it marks 12 months of direct services to Pakistan from Manchester Airport

Pakistan’s biggest airline has hit an impressive milestone in its operations at Manchester Airport – as it marks a year of linking the south Asian country to the UK’s Northern hub.Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) - the country’s flag carrier - launched its service from Manchester to the...

mediacentre.manchesterairport.co.uk

I see passengers reaching 500k for UK alone in a year. $500m revenue which was going to foreign airlines.

 

[Yasser76]

to be honest, these days on Toronto-Islamabad they been serving the pulao rice with daal and chicken curry/qorma and i found it to be filling and tasty. However there was no salad! Only yogurt and a desert and no breadroll/butter.

Hopefully there is an improvement in PIA soon, but i was also missed at the reduction of luggage/baggage weight. Used to be 2 x 28kgs for Toronto, now its 1 bag per ticket of 28kgs or you pay more for baggage!

Food was the only thing PIA has got consistently right, credit where it is due, they woud have an inflight mutiny if they gave small portions of watery curry or dry Biryani

 

[RescueRanger]

Food was the only thing PIA has got consistently right, credit where it is due, they woud have an inflight mutiny if they gave small portions of watery curry or dry Biryani

The worst in flight food I have ever had was on Peace Airlines domestic flight in Nigeria. Once you have flown on an Nigerian or Central Asian airline on a domestic route, you will never complain about PIA ever again.

 

[PK781]

Why is PIA so ''excited'' about flying wet-leased aircrafts that would not even have its pilots or crew or logo

Nevertheless, adding capacity and direct flights to Pakistan from the UK (there is tremendous demand and pressure from the British Pakistani diaspora) is important and I guess using Norse's B787 will be perfect until PIA fixes or renews its long-haul fleet.

It buys PIA more time, and brings more business revenue for PIA. With the middle east in turmoil/war and Norse's own financial issues, we may end up with more of their B787s in due time, maybe down the road we can even purchase the B787s if Boeing takes longer or something.

Good to see (direct flight) PIA longhaul network being restored.....adds more options for our european Pakistanis......can't beat a direct flight from London, Manchester, Birmingham to Pakistan.......shorter journey is best.
You just can't beat a 7 hr flight to Islamabad/Lahore from UK.....

 

[PK781]

The worst in flight food I have ever had was on Peace Airlines domestic flight in Nigeria. Once you have flown on an Nigerian or Central Asian airline on a domestic route, you will never complain about PIA ever again.

true, well said. Given the atrocious food (even muslim meal is so bland) on airlines like lufthansa, Air Canada, Turkish, etc just does not go well with our taste-buds.
While the portions were generous, i still found food on Saudia, EgyptAir, Etihad to be bland and weird (breakfast options lol)

PIA has it best, at least for the Pakistanis bcaz we care alot even when flying our food better be tasty up there at 35000 ft ! lolz

 

[Yasser76]

Nevertheless, adding capacity and direct flights to Pakistan from the UK (there is tremendous demand and pressure from the British Pakistani diaspora) is important and I guess using Norse's B787 will be perfect until PIA fixes or renews its long-haul fleet.

It buys PIA more time, and brings more business revenue for PIA. With the middle east in turmoil/war and Norse's own financial issues, we may end up with more of their B787s in due time, maybe down the road we can even purchase the B787s if Boeing takes longer or something.

Good to see (direct flight) PIA longhaul network being restored.....adds more options for our european Pakistanis......can't beat a direct flight from London, Manchester, Birmingham to Pakistan.......shorter journey is best.
You just can't beat a 7 hr flight to Islamabad/Lahore from UK.....

Yup, UAE was gaining so much revenues from UK/EU Pakistanis via Etihad and Emirates, time to bring that cash home

 

[Asif]

in the GCC, PIA will easily get business from the USL (UnSkilled labour) and SSL (Semi Skilled) just by increasing flight frequency and reliability.
However, to bring back the families and the rest, they have to improve service alot. Simply a single class configuration wont cut it, nor will the frequency. When you travel as family or with kids, its more to do with flying in a decent surrounding, avoiding the possible hassle and headaches of the journey and making the journey as peaceful as possible.

 

[Hussain]

 

[Hussain]

 

[Hussain]

 

[Watandar]

If PIA can replace the tired worn out torn up 777's for Toronto, make its frequency daily and improve the cabin service, it can be competitive for the first time in decades in the lucrative North American market.

PIA could also arrange a codeshare with American and European airlines to first fly Pakistan bound passengers to London, then onwards direct to Pakistan via PIA.

This will help recover the huge market share of Pakistan bound traffic from NA/Europe that was lost to Turkish/GCC airlines.

If you are paying for planes , spare parts and fuel in dollars and Euros , then selling tickets in dollars and Euros is the only way to be profitable. Rupees, dirhams, riyals won't cut it.

I also don't think PIA should resume flying to the US anytime soon.

 

[PK781]

If PIA can replace the tired worn out torn up 777's for Toronto, make its frequency daily and improve the cabin service, it can be competitive for the first time in decades in the lucrative North American market.

PIA could also arrange a codeshare with American and European airlines to first fly Pakistan bound passengers to London, then onwards direct to Pakistan via PIA.

This will help recover the huge market share of Pakistan bound traffic from NA/Europe that was lost to Turkish/GCC airlines.

If you are paying for planes , spare parts and fuel in dollars and Euros , then selling tickets in dollars and Euros is the only way to be profitable. Rupees, dirhams, riyals won't cut it.

I also don't think PIA should resume flying to the US anytime soon.

Agree, but the Toronto/NewYork main issue is distance and the fuel needed with the weight. So the B777-200LR are mostly used as they have capacity for ultra longhaul (registrations AP-BGZ and AP-BGY are mostly operating Toronto as it has crew bunks as they have set of 2 flight crews if i am not mistaken)

UK sector will have no problems with any of these flights as they will be full even with daily flights. Rather, Manchester and Birmingham will need more capacity, and even Bradford will/may be added back soon when fleet grows. UK alone is a big huge market and with huge demand for direct flights to Pak in 7-8 hrs.

I'm surprised British Airways has not added flights from Manchester or Birmingham to Islamabad, as they can do well and make money on this route easily as PIA plays catching up. Currently they only fly 3 times to Islamabad from London heathrow i think, that capacity needs to b made into daily flight.

What PIA needs is the activation and addition of LongHaul/Widebodies to its fleet to restore entire European network, and after that look to add American stations like New York, Houston or Chicago etc.

That old NewYork to Lahore flight was very popular for families, hope it can be brought back someday when PIA grows. 12-13 hr flight to lahore cannot be beat bcaz otherwise its a very long journey via middle east......or even via London heathrow stopover to jump on PIA or BA

 

[Par 5]

Wishing Adrian Hamilton the best for running PIA and bringing its glory days back. Also hope that the establishment will not interfere in his actions and allow him to operate PIA as 'he' seems best

 

[Meengla]

As I said above, PIA could not get any worse under the new Arif Habib led consortium. The Bhuttos, in the late 80s, started the decline of not just the PIA but also of other esteemed companies like the Pakistan Steel Mills. The Sharifs did their own share of stupid policies.

Mr. Habib is a businessman, through and through. And with a kind heart and with a sharp mind. The best of Pakistanis.