(also known as ''PIA''), is the national
Flag Carrier of
Pakistan with a network of both passenger and cargo operation around the world. Its main hubs are
Jinnah International Airport ,
Karachi , the
Allama Iqbal International Airport ,
Lahore and the
Islamabad International Airport ,
Islamabad /
Rawalpindi .
Pakistan International Airlines ''PIA'' can trace its beginnings to the days when Pakistan still was not a nation. In 1946,
Muhammed Ali Jinnah , also known as ''
Quaid-e-Azam '', realized the need of an airline network for the forming country. He called upon the help of an experienced industrialist,
Mirza Ahmad Ispahani .
On
October 23 of 1946,
Orient Airways was set up, registered in
Calcutta . In February of 1947, three
DC-3 airplanes were bought from a company in
Texas , and in May of that year, the airline was granted a license to fly. Services were started in June, from Calcutta to
Akyab and
Rangoon . This was the first post war airline flight by an
Indian registered airline company. Two months after this service began, Pakistan as a nation was formed. ''Orient Airways'' began relief flights to the new nation, and soon after, it moved operations to
Karachi , where it began the important route from Karachi to
Dacca . In addition, their initial domestic route in Pakistan was established, from Karachi to
Lahore to
Peshawar , and from Karachi to
Quetta to Lahore.
Due to increasing passenger demand, the airline increased its fleet before the end of the 1940s. The government of Pakistan, realizing the operation was failing economically, asked the airline to merge into a new, national airline that the government was planning on creating. Eventually, on
March 11 of 1955, ''Orient Airways'' merged with the Government's proposed airline, becoming ''Pakistan International Airlines Corporation''. During the same year, the airline opened its first international service, under the ''PIA'' name, from Karachi to
London Heathrow Airport in
London ,
United Kingdom , via
Cairo International Airport in
Cairo, Egypt and
Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport in
Fiumicino, Italy using Lockheed Constellations. The DC-3s continued operating the domestic services in Pakistan.
In 1956 ''PIA'' ordered two ''Super
Lockheed Constellation s'' and five Vicker
Viscount . In 1959,
Nur Khan was named managing director of ''PIA'', thus beginning what many in the airline industry call ''the golden years of PIA''.
In March of 1960, ''PIA'' became the first
Asian airline to enter the jet age when
Boeing 707 service was introduced. The aircraft was wet leased from
Pan American and in 1961, services were begun to
JFK International Airport in
New York , then ''Idlewild Airport''. In 1962, orders were placed for
Boeing 720 's,
Fokker F27 's and
Sikorsky helicopters. One of PIA's own Boeing 720s broke a record that year, when it flew from Karachi to London non-stop in under 7 hours. During 1962, services to
East Pakistan (now
Bangladesh ) were proving to be difficult, therefore PIA placed their
Sikorsky S-61 helicopters on these routes until 1966 when conditions improved.
In 1964 history was made again by ''PIA'' when it became the first airline from a non-communist country to fly to the
People's Republic Of China . As the
Indo-Pakistani War Of 1965 broke out, ''PIA'' helped the Pakistani forces with logistics and transport. In 1966, the Viscounts were phased out, substituted by
Tridents . However, these were later sold to
CAAC , the Communist Chinese airline of the time.
The 1970s saw the resumption of transatlantic fights for the airline, and many new destinations. It once again aided the
Pakistan Army by transporting soldiers to
East Pakistan in the
Indo-Pakistani War Of 1971 and lost a couple of its aicraft to
Indian Air Force fighters. In 1972 it applied to operate to
Libya and an agreement was signed with
Yugoslav airline
JAT . In 1973,
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 s arrived and were used by the airline before they were replaced by Boeing 747s.
In 1974 air freight services started, as well as a cargo service to New York. In 1975, new uniforms were introduced for ''PIA'' stewardesses, and in 1976, leased
Boeing 747 s came into service, the first time the airline had such a type. In 1978, the airline bought their first 747 aircraft, which have since become a staple of the airline's fleet. Also in 1978 the airline provided help to
Somali Airlines ,
Air Malta and
Yemenia ; and established a hotel management service in the
United Arab Emirates . ''PIA'' also leased two of its own Boeing 720s to Air Malta during the 70s.
The 1980s began with the opening of a cargo center in Karachi. In 1981, ''PIA'' was named ''most efficient airline to the
Haj operation'', and a duty-free sales service was inaugrated. From 1982 saw the welcoming of
Airbus A300 aircraft to the fleet and the first ''C'' and ''D'' checks on the fleet were performed in Karachi. In 1984, domestic coach fare service at night was introduced. In 1985 the PIA Planetarium tourist attraction was inaugurated in Karachi and later in Lahore which had static Boeing 707s on display for the general public. In the same year, five
Boeing 737 s joined the fleet. Two former ''PIA'' Boeing 720B now forms part of the Planetarium's exhibition at Karachi and Lahore. At the start of 1987 and 1988 flights were introduced to
Male and to
Toronto Pearson International Airport , respectively. In 1989, the first women pilots started to command passenger flights.
PIA received the first of six
Airbus A310-308 aircraft on
25 June ,
1991 from Airbus Industrie. In 1992, flights started to
Tashkent and in 1993, to
Zürich, Switzerland . In addition, ''PIA'' became a user of the ''Sabre'', ''Galileo'' and ''Amadeus'' global distribution systems or GDS. During 1994 PIA added more destinations to its route map with
Jakarta ,
Fujairah ,
Baky and
Al-Ain and for the first time air safari flights were launched using a Boeing 737. In 1995 a 747 flight simulation system arrived, and the purchase of a used
Air France A300 aircraft. In 1996, the airline leased
Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft, and re-opened services to
Beirut International Airport in
Beirut, Lebanon . However, ''PIA'' only used the Tupolev Tu-154 for a very short time to deal with the additional demand during the summer of 1996.
In 1999, the airline leased five Boeing 747-300 aircraft from Cathay Pacific to replace its aging Boeing 747-200 aircraft. The aircraft wore a new livery with a Pashmina tail and white body and large "Pakistan" titles on the front fuselage. The livery was applied to some of the fleet during the 90s but due to its unpopularity the livery was dropped and the aircrafts painted were repainted in the 1990s sporty livery. The Boeing 747-300s remained in the new look but with a plane green tail with PIA titles.
airport]]
In July 2002, PIA decided to purchase six Boeing 747-300 aircraft from
Cathay Pacific , five of which were already on lease with PIA, for $63 million dollars. The sixth arrived shortly after to complete the deal. The Boeing 747-300 are flying mainly to the UK, USA and Saudi Arabia with a few domestic operations that include Karachi-Lahore and Karachi-Islamabad.
Later in October, 2002, the airline decided to purchase eight
Boeing 777 aircraft from
The Boeing Company , including three 200 ER (Extended Range), two 200 LR (Longer Range) and three 300 ER versions. PIA was the first customer to revive the Boeing 777-200LR project that only had three planes on order by EVA Air. The first two Boeing 777-200LR produced were test aircraft for the -200LR variant used by Boeing, before their delivery to PIA. One of these Boeing 777-200LR was displayed at the
Paris Airshow 2005. PIA had hinted that it may add three more 777-200LR to serve its North American routes. PIA became the launch customer of the
B777-200LR when it ordered the Boeing 777 family of aircraft.
In January 2004, PIA received its first 777-200ER from Boeing, and by March all three 777-200ER were in service. The
Boeing 777 aircraft are now serving international routes to
UK ,
Canada and
USA and domestic Karachi-Lahore-Karachi and Karachi-Islamabad-Karachi routes. PIA also acquired six half life
Airbus A310 -300/ET from the Airbus management on a ten year lease agreement. The aircraft are flying on most international and domestic routes.
On delivery of the first three Boeing 777 the airline introduced a completely new livery that gave the airline a new corporate image. The airline further introduced the new livery on all of its existing fleet.
On 6 December 2005, PIA decided to lease an additional new Boeing 777 via the
International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC). The aircraft will have the same specifications as the previous Boeing 777-200ER it operates. The aircraft is due to be delivered in January 2007. The aircraft will be on lease to the airline for ten years with an option to purchase at the end of the term.
in PIA 2004 colours]]
On the 3rd November 2005, PIA signed an agreement with the
ATR company (Avions de Transport Régional) to purchase seven brand new
ATR 42 -500. The agreement was signed by Mr
Tariq Kirmani , Chairman & CEO of PIA and Mr
Filippo Bagnato , CEO of ATR in the presence of the General Consuls of France and Italy. The aircraft will replace PIA’s aging F-27 aircraft fleet. The 7 48-seat ATR 42-500 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered between 2006 and 2007 with delivery of the first aircraft to PIA in May 2006, another two in the third quarter to 2006 and four will be delivered in 2007. The total value of the contract is approximately US $100 million. He also went on to say PIA will acquire three brand new
ATR 72 and they will be delivered in 2007-2008.
On 25 January 2006, PIA operated flight PK-623 with all-female pilots and crew from Islamabad International Airport,
Islamabad to Allama Iqbal International Airport,
Lahore with forty-two passengers on board. The aircraft used was a
Fokker F-27-200 .
Ayesha Rabia Naveed was the Captain of the Fokker flight while
Sadia Ali was the First Officer while two female workers were cabin crew.
On 15 February 2006 the first Boeing 777-200ER aircraft rolled into the
Ispahani Hangar for a major overhaul known as a "C" Check. This was made possible by the PIA engineers and their team which also involved coordination with
Boeing ,
Civil Aviation Authority Of Pakistan ,
European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) besides the development of the infrastructure and training of PIA engineers and staff.
During this check, representatives of Boeing and CAA of Pakistan were in close liaison with the management of PIA Engineering. This was to ensure that the maintenance quality levels are as per international standards in all respects. PIA engineering is certified under EASA PART-145 and this capability will provide additional value to an increasing number of PIA Engineering’s customers in future.
On February 25, Boeing delivered the world's first longest-range commercial airliner to Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). PIA's first B777-200LR Worldliner left Paine Field in
Everett, Washington and flew to
Manchester ,
England , where it picked up passengers before flying on to Islamabad, Pakistan.
PIA started direct, nonstop flights from
Toronto to Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore from March 3, 2006. PIA started non-stop flights to
New York City three time week from March 23, 2006. It also plans to fly non-stop two times a week to
Houston and
Chicago starting this summer. Houston will be flown direct from Lahore and Karachi while Chicago and New York will be flown direct from Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. PIA will start flying direct twice weekly to
Los Angeles starting in May 2006 using 777-200LR.
PIA received the delivery of its second Boeing 777-200LR on March 23, 2006. PIA will be the first airline to fly the entire Boeing 777 family after the delivery of Boeing 777-300ER in December 2006.
The Pakistan International Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of April 2006);
at
Allama Iqbal International Airport ,
Lahore ]]
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has also placed orders for more aircraft with the
ATR Company and
Boeing Company . The following aircraft are for delivery from
2006 onwards:
- For PIA's short haul fleet, the airline is deciding a replacement for its fleet of Boeing 737. They will be replaced by either eight A321 aircraft or eight A320-200 aircraft.
- PIA is planning to buy Three ATR 72 which will be delivered after the seven ATR 42-500 in 2007.
Pakistan International Airline serves 46 International destinations across four continents and 36 domestic destinations.
- First airline from an Asian land country and the first airline from a Muslim country to fly the Super Constellation.
- First asian airline to operate a jet Aircraft .
- First asian airline to be granted maintenance approval by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Air Registration Board , predecessor of the British Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
- First non-communist airline to fly to the People's Republic of China , and to operate a service between Asia and Europe via Moscow .
- First airline in Asia to induct the new technology Boeing 737-300 aircraft.
- First airline in the world to operate scheduled helicopter services.
- First airline to show in-flight movies on international routes.
- First airline in South Asia to introduce auto-ticketing facility.
- First airline in the world to start Air Safari with jet aircraft.
- First airline in the world to take delivery of the Boeing 777-200LR (Longer Range Variant).
- First all female crew flight operated in Pakistan using a Fokker F-27 from Islamabad to Lahore.
- First airline in the world to fly the entire Boeing 777 family after the delivery of Boeing 777-300ER in December 2006.
- PIA is also sponsoring the A1 Team Pakistan for the A1 Grand Prix , recently being introduced in over 25 nations around the world. The sport is very similar to the Formula One races and are held during the Northern Hemisphere winter off-season of the FIA Formula 1 Grand Prix series.
- PIA also promotes other sports within Pakistan that include Cricket , Hockey , Football , Squash , Polo , Tennis , Snooker , Badminton , Bridge , Chess , Table Tennis , Cycling and Bodybuilding .
737 aircraft leased by PIA during
Hajj season of 2005-2006 seen at
Jinnah International Airport , Karachi ]]
PIA operates an extensive two-month (pre and post)
Hajj operation each year to and from
Jeddah in
Saudi Arabia .
PIA transports 90,000 pilgrims each year from
Karachi ,
Lahore ,
Islamabad ,
Peshawar ,
Quetta ,
Faisalabad ,
Multan ,
Sukkur to the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia .
In 2000, PIA operated 306 flights, carrying 88243 pilgrims, in its pre-Hajj operation, which extended over a period of 26 days.
Similarly, PIA’s extensive post-Hajj operation in 2000, which extended over a period of 26 days operated 306 flights out of Jeddah back to
Pakistan . A total of 88243 Hajis (pilgrims) were transported to cities in Pakistan from 12th Feb 2000 to 14th April, 2000.
PIA also operates flights from
Pakistan to
Jeddah during the
Umrah season. PIA also leases
Boeing 747 s and
Airbus A300 s to deal with the extra demand.
When Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif were in office during the 1990s, a
Boeing 737 from the fleet of Boeing 737-300 PIA had, was used only for official tours and visits to other countries. However, when General Musharaf took office in 1999, the Boeing B737 was returned to PIA and repainted in the 1990s livery PIA had at the time.
Both the President
Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister
Shaukat Aziz use an
Airbus A310 from PIA's fleet for their world tours and meetings.
in a superseded colour scheme]]
